Do you believe in Destiny?
by Herofire
Summary: Time manipulation had never been seen before. No one had ever lived with that power. Or at least, that's what everyone thought. (Spoilers for Volume 3, Chapter 12)
1. Prolouge-Xiao Long Household-Rewritten

**AN: Quick thanks to Untold Mage for allowing me to use his artwork.**

* * *

The wind whistled in Ruby's ears as she ran up the side of the CCT tower. She could feel the gentle hum of Weiss glyphs underneath her feet, countering the rough surface of the tower's crumbling walls. Despite her height, she could still hear the distant screams and gunshots of the battle raging below. Weiss's last words rang in her ears.

 _"You can do this."_

Up and up she went, praying for her friend's sake and her own that Weiss would not be interrupted until she finished her ascent. At this height, her aura would provide little protection from gravity, and she really, _really_ didn't want to die of massive internal injuries and/or a broken neck. Still, her legs were beginning to ache, and it wouldn't be much longer until she ran out of options.

Thankfully, the top of the tower wasn't much farther, so she gathered her strength and pushed forward. A few more metres and she'd get there, and she'd save Pyrrha and stop all of this.

Somehow.

Ruby leapt over the side and landed in a small pile of rubble. Stones clinked off the sides, a few lucky pebbles striking her arms and legs. They hurt, surprisingly. The battles of the night had drained most of her aura. Looking upwards, Ruby drew her scythe, prepared to fight any opponent to save her friend.

Fate had other plans that night.

Cinder, Emerald's team mate, drew back her glass bow, and let loose an arrow. It whistled towards Pyrrha's chest. Ruby tried to move, to block the shot, but her limbs refused to move quick enough, they felt as if she was moving through water rather than air.

She was helpless as it struck through her friend's heart, burning her from the inside out. She wanted to look away, but she couldn't pull her gaze away from Pyrrha's disintegration, couldn't help but follow the ashes that flew into the night.

Cinder walked over to her, completely unbothered. Ruby found herself tilting her head upwards to look at Cinder's face, having fallen to her knees since arriving.

"Another young girl, fighting a war she cannot win?" Cinder drawled, her heels clicking along the ground. "Ruby, isn't it?"

"You killed her," She whispered, her grip on Crescent Rose tightening.

Not noticing her words, Cinder continued, "I am sorry about your friend." She glanced over at Pyrrha's circlet, "Such talent, wasted."

Ruby felt hot tears fall down her cheeks. Cinder continued to monologue for what felt like hours, but all she could focus on was the thin circle of metal sitting in front of her. She'd never seen it separate from Pyrrha before, not even the dance.

Now it was alone, its owner gone.

Ruby had failed.

Shoving herself to her feat, Ruby rushed Cinder, Crescent Rose swinging out in front of her. She screamed, "MURDERER!" And carved a horizontal slash, encompassing everything in front of her.

Cinder was sent flying, crashing into a haphazardly placed gear teetering off the edge. A sudden shriek drew Ruby's gaze from her towards the large Grimm from before. It was charging at her, killing claws poised to strike.

Before she had a chance to maneuver out of the monsters way, she was struck by a gout of fire from behind. The last shreds of her aura disappeared, leaving her prone on the ground, defenseless. Crescent rose bounced along the ground, falling off the tower and onto the ground far below.

"This is my time!" Cinder roared, flying, actually flying over her. She raised a hand wreathed in flames. "My power, my fate!" She spat.

Ruby coughed, and then spat out, "My friends will stop you!" She tried to push herself up, but couldn't get her arms to cooperate.

Cinder smirked. "Let them try." Her body shook, and two giant waves of fire arced towards her.

Time slowed to a crawl. Ruby saw the dragon dive bombing her, twisting itself so that its blows would not injure the women above her. She saw the flashes of gunfire from the city and courtyard, could even see Yang, Blake, and Weiss, all huddled around a ship, the conscious members of her team eagerly awaiting her return.

Most of all, she saw Cinder, floating above her in all her terrible glory. Flames flickered over her dress, arcing over her arms and calves—all channelled towards the killing strike she had launched.

The realisation struck her as surely a cannonball. Her friends would come, and they would die under this madwoman's power. _And there was nothing she could do._

In that one moment, that horrible, haunting moment before her life was wicked away, she felt a pressure build throughout her skull. The pain felt similar to that of a concussion, but significantly worse.

Moments before the flame reached her, her eyes began to burn. For a few milliseconds she thought it was the flames, but the look of shock on Cinder's face soon made her realise that is what not.

"WHAT!?" Cinder screamed, scuttling backwards. The dragon roared, and the flames had disappeared.

Cinder's face, eyes bugged out, mouth open, was the last thing Ruby saw before everything went white.

* * *

 _Two men sit at a chess set in a drawing room. One is tall, with elegantly combed black hair turning to grey. He wears a fitted suit and tie, no wrinkles or creases anywhere. Despite his serious appearance, there is a twinkle in his eye as he maneuvers his pieces around the board, and his face is lined with the remnants of many nights filled with laughter._

 _The other is shorter, younger. His black hair is unmarred by age, yet it's far messier than the elder's is. His outfit is far cheaper, consisting of an off the rack jacket and shirt, combined with a huntsman's leggings. The thick leather clashes horrible with his manner, but the man is untroubled by this. Once, he told the older man that he "Never found another pair that fit me."_

 _The youngest moves a chess piece, causing the older to move his queen._

" _Check," He tells the younger man, lifting his eyes. The youngest doesn't respond, seemingly distracted by two birds flitting by the window. The older man coughs._

" _Check," He repeats, and this time the other man listens. His gaze slid from the window to him, and comprehension dawned on him. He grinned wryly and began to survey the board. Not only was his king vulnerable to his queen, but also most of his pieces had already been defeated, lying forgotten at the side. Few options were left to him, and all required great risk._

 _Finally, he picked up a knight and placed it in front of the king, blocking his queen's advance. It was an intelligent move, one of the few he still had available, but still he hesitated. Not out of fear, as one would expect, but as if he had forgotten where he was._

" _Does something trouble you, my son?" The elder asked, pulling his queen back to a safe distance._

" _No, my liege." He responded, before shifting in his seat and biting his lip. "Well, perhaps there is." With a small movement he pushed his knight forward, ridding the board of one of the elder's pawns._

" _Then pray tell." The elder told him, "And perhaps I may be of assistance."_

 _The younger man shook his head. "No, it is a trivial flight of fancy, no need for you to become involved." As he spoke, the elder moved a pawn near his end of the board to the end, and turned it into a queen._

" _Very well sir." They younger man said, ignorant of the new piece on the table. "What do you know about, well, time travel?"_

 _The elder laughed, a deep, booming sound that echoed through the room. "That was the question that vexed you so?" With a chuckle he moved his new queen behind his opponent's king. "Check."_

 _With nary a word the youngling moved, taking out his queen with his king. A risky maneuver, and quite possibly a grievous mistake. "It was not the question that vexed me, but your answer. I've been… reading some scholarly articles about the maidens, and I've…"_

" _Don't tell me you believe in that hogwash?" The elder interrupted. "It's madness, the idea of magic. Aura is one thing, but that is, well, it's something else entirely!" He scanned the board, and smiled. With two fingers he pushed his original queen close to the king. "Check."_

 _"You call it fraudulent, yet I myself have seen proof." The younger man moved his knight, setting it up to take out the queen. "I've seen the maidens battle. It was truly an awe-inspiring sight."_

" _Humph." The elder grunted, shifting his attention from the chessboard to his opponent. His mouth carried a smirk, along with an air of satisfaction. Despite the offense it provided, the elder didn't comment on it. Truly it was a rare day for one to surprise him. "Time travel, you say?"_

 _The young man nodded._

" _The issue, my boy, is physics." He told him, leaning forward. "Even if this magic is real—"_

" _It is!" 'The boy' insisted. The older man scowled at the interruption. Such insubordination could not be tolerated, later he would find a suitable punishment._

"— _Even so," He continued, pausing briefly. "Time is not a river, flowing from right to left. There is no speed at which it moves, as it cannot be measured."_

" _Isn't that the purpose of clocks?" The younger man asked, tilting his head to the side. "To measure time?"_

 _The elder chuckled. "Only in a form that can be understood by a human mind. Yes, clocks measure time, but what use is this without a comparison?"_

" _I—I don't understand."_

 _The elder leaned back. "To put it simply, how fast does time move?"_

 _The young one opened his mouth, but no words came out._

" _Exactly. Time does not act like some river, it is something wholly different from our normal laws. So how, exactly, would one travel through it?"_

 _The young man didn't answer. For several minutes, the only sound was the clock, its pendulum swinging back and forth in its case. The eldest leaned forward, and shifted his last remaining knight to counter its mirror. The game was won now, his opponent had lost any reasonable methods of attack or defense._

" _But what if it was possible?" His opposite asked, ignoring the game. "What if it did transpire? What would happen to the person?"_

 _The eldest sighed, it seemed the world did not wish for him to finish this battle in any reasonable time. With great reluctance, he said, "Assuming that this hypothetical scenario takes into account at least some of reality." The younger man coughed. "Then such a reaction would require incredible energy. The kind that a full grown huntsman could scarcely hope to witness, let alone have access to."_

" _What about the maidens?" He urged, "Could they have the power?"_

" _Perhaps, as could the wizard." The elder taunted, "Regardless, even assuming that power could exist, what could be transported, people? Aura?_ _Memories?"_

 _The young man shrugged, a gesture that irked the elder to no end. "I'd imagine aura, or perhaps memories."_

" _Really?" The elder queried, "Please, explain."_

" _Well," He shifted in his seat. "They are less, well, physical than a body. I simply suppose that they would travel better."_

 _The eldest pondered this assumption, and declared it valid. "If this is true, then let us assume Aura is the package. If, let's say you, sent the package backwards, where would it go?"_

" _What kind of question is that?" The young man answered, letting out a harsh laugh. "Where I sent it, of course!"_

" _And how would you control that?" The elder's voice quickened, a maniac gleam in his eyes. It was a look that the younger man both enjoyed and feared, for it meant that the man had discovered some mystery that interested him. "Aura is no box, it does not simply sit where one wants it to. If an Aura, belonging to a person, is separated from that person, it will not rest until it can reunite with its other parts."_

" _Of course."_

" _Indeed, of course." He repeated. "But you do not understand what that means. Aura still follows the same laws as the rest of the natural world. It cannot take the same place as other Aura without either drawing it out or destroying it! Laws of physics, my boy, make time travel impossible!"_

 _He glanced at the clock. "Well, look at that! You've got me rambling!" With a good natured sigh he returned to the game. Surveying the board, and remembering what he was doing, he remarked, "No matter, as the game is over, for you at least."_

 _The younger man checked the board, searching for anything he could do to win. There wasn't. It was no longer a matter of tactics, as he had simply lost too many pieces to effectively counter attack. It was, really, a checkmate, but he felt it cruel to simply announce it without giving his enemy a chance to fight back. Useless as it would be._

" _So it seems." He admitted, before a dangerous smirk grew upon his head. His cheekbone's lifted, his eyes glinted, and the elder gained the uncomfortable feeling of being hunted._

" _So it seems, but as a wise man once told me," He lifted his last remained piece, his king. "If you find yourself in a game you cannot win," He said, and then moved the piece up and over the queen, knocking it off the board and onto the floor. The elder gaped at him, stuttering. The young man's smirk grew wider._

" _Change the rules."_

* * *

The gentle, chirping sounds of birds drew the sleeping form of Ruby out from underneath the covers of her bed. Blinking away groggy eyes, she starred out her window, glaring at the early morning sun. Outside, she could see trees, leaves green, waving in the wind. Thousands of birds flitted from branch to branch, singing their offending notes.

Turning her senses inwards, she smelt fresh cookies, wafting from the kitchen. Pots and plates clinked, again and again, and Ruby could just make out the sound of her dad—Taiyang Xiao Long—humming as he cooked. Some old song played in the background, the lyrics muffled by her door.

Slowly, Ruby got to her feet. The floor creaked as she landed, and she heard Dad cease his singing. Staying stiller than an ice statue, she waited until he began moving again before she walked over to her door. She glanced at the other bed, checking to see if Yang was in it. The bed was empty, perfectly made, and no sign of anyone sleeping there in months. Odd.

Somehow, she got home. She didn't remember how, or when, really, but whatever had happened at the school hadn't killed her. How, exactly, she was alive was a question she couldn't answer.

It wasn't as if she had amnesia. No, her memories of the past few hours were flawless, every detail assuredly carved into her mind. She just remembered Cinder's final attack, and then, nothing.

Nothing until now, at least.

Doing her best not to make too much noise, Ruby gently threw open her door. Taking a quick step outside, she suddenly felt an overwhelming wave of _wrongness_. Hastily she pulled her foot back in. Standing at the edge of her door—feeling incredibly stupid—she tried to figure her feeling.

It didn't feel wrong in the moral way. She wasn't doing something wrong, wasn't going against any kind of rule she had about the world. It just felt like…like she was forgetting something, something she had to do. Ruby put her hands on her hips, putting them a little closer to her front than her back to avoid—

Crescent Rose. Her weapon, which was probably in storage right now. And not on her. That's what felt wrong. So many terrible events could have been avoided if she had been armed, and now the lack of her scythe made the world feel off kilter.

Gritting her teeth and shaking her head, she ignored the sensation. She was home, there was nothing here that could threaten her.

She crept down the hallway, passing by cream colored doors. From the kitchen, she could hear dad pulling out plates and setting them down, presumably on the table. The bathroom door was open, but the guest room door was closed. The few times she could remember that happening was when Yang got sick and needed to be quarantined. Her mind went back to the courtyard, and her sisters severed arm.

She went to knock on the door, ask if Yang—for she was the most likely person to be in the room—if she was okay, but her hand stopped before it met the wood. Putting her ear to the door, she listened for any sign that her sister was awake. The room was quiet, except for the gentle snores of her sister, a few creaks from the bed, and the soft click of a clock striking the hour.

Sighing, Ruby set her open palm on the door. Clearly her sister was still asleep, and she was loathe to awaken her. If she thought she was tired, she couldn't imagine how exhausted Yang must be.

She continued into the kitchen. Dad was standing in front of the stove, two frying pans full of bacon and pancakes sizzling in away in front of him. His scroll was on the counter, leaning against the wall, playing the music she heard from her room. The fridge was open, cold air giving rise to goosebumps on her skin. He was humming along to the music, having not noticed his daughter come up behind him.

Ruby didn't, couldn't move. She was struck down by the sheer… normalness of the scene in front of her. She came back from a—a war, _so he made pancakes?_ Sure, her father was a bit eccentric at times, but this felt almost callous. An affront to the lives lost in the battle. Was it some attempt to comfort her? Did he think she had forgotten what happened, and didn't her to panic until she figured it out?

All these thoughts and more flew through her head as Ruby stood there, staring at her father. So the last thing she expected was for him to reach over to his scroll, switch it off, and then turn to her. Grinning widely, he said, "Morning Rubes!" He smiled at her warmly, his eyes twinkling. "Dressed already, huh? Looking forward to today?"

Ruby didn't respond, but her mouth dropped open. For a moment she was frozen to the spot.

Suddenly, she ran to Dad and pulled him into a crushing hug. Surprised, Dad did nothing at first, but when his daughter began to sob, he pulled her closer.

"Shh…" He whispered, "It's okay, it's okay…"

"Dad… I'm so sorry…" Ruby cried, laying her head on dad shoulder.

"What's your fault? What happened?" He asked. Ruby sniffled, and then pulled back to face him.

"I couldn't… Pyrrha and Penny and…" She told him, her cries subsiding.

"Who's—what?" He asked, confusion clear on his face. "Ruby, what are you talking about?"

Now it was Ruby's turn to be confused. "Um, Beacon?"

"The school?"

"Well, yeah." Ruby retorted, "I mean, you know? The tournament and the battle?"

"Ruby, I have no idea what you're talking about." Dad told her, "Is this a dream you had?"

"No! Dad, the Vytal festival? The one that Yang broke a guy's leg on? Even though he didn't, actually, cause I just saw the guy that she hit and he was walking around so his leg clearly wasn't broken and—"

He shut her mouth with his hand. "Ruby. The Vytal festival isn't for another six months."

…What?

"What?" She said once he let go of her lips.

"Yeah, it's spring. Rubes, the festivals in the fall." He sighed, and pulled her back into the hug. "You just had a nightmare, alright?"

Safe in Dads arms, Ruby could almost believe his words. But her memories said otherwise: the hours spent studying, fighting the White Fang, battling Torchwick on top of an airship. It felt too real to be a dream. Far, far too real.

But…six months _before_ the Vytal Festival? Before the tournament? Was she dreaming now? Was this all nothing more than the dying thoughts of a girl burning alive?

She pinched the back of her hand.

Nope, not dreaming.

Dad got up, leaving a hand on her shoulder. "How about you go get the others and grab some breakfast, alright?" He quickly flipped a now burnt pancake. "I've gotta finish up here." He smiled at her. She gave him one in return.

Whatever was going on, at least she was home.

* * *

Ruby's guess as to her sister's location was, surprisingly, accurate. As soon as she asked where Yang was, she got a knowing look and, "Guest room."

So a few minutes later, that's where she found herself, hand once again raised to knock on the door. Yet she couldn't do it. The wood leered over her, taunting her inability to knock on its surface. It should be simple, just… hit it, and her sister would eventually answer her knocks.

And there was the problem. Her sister, one of the most important people in her life, would answer the door. The issue was that Ruby wasn't certain how much she'd remember. The past/future/something six months had somehow never happened. Pyrrha was still alive, Penny was still alive, and…someone else who had a name that started with a P and was dead.

But Dad didn't remember that. Sure, he wasn't there, but the whole thing had been massively televised. Reporters had swarmed the coliseum every battle, and she herself had read several of the articles they had written. Yet he was ignorant of it, and claimed that the festival wasn't for another few months!

She knew what it sounded like. But that was, well, it was impossible, wasn't it? Ruby knew quite a bit about physics, but most of her knowledge revolved around how to wield Crescent Rose and improve it, not quantum mechanics. The few things she did know about time travel came from movies and comic books, and already those had proved inaccurate.

She didn't need a car, for example.

Ruby closed her eyes and sighed. Come on! You're a huntress! You can't be scared of your sister! With totally not shaking hands she knocked three times. She heard a muffled thud, a few quiet swears and then…

Nothing.

For several long minutes, the room was quieter than a grave. Ruby started tapping her foot, nerves slowly replaced by annoyance. She knocked again, much more forceful than before, and crossed her arms.

The floors creaked, and footsteps gradually grew closer to the door. There was a pause before Ruby could hear the door knob being turned, and then Yang's face slowly showed itself as she pulled open the door.

Any annoyance fled, replaced by sympathy when Ruby looked at her sister. She looked like crap; pale skin and shaking hands.

"Ruby?" She whispered. The girl in question nodded.

Yang threw the door open, and pulled her into a painful hug. "Ruby!" She cried, "You're okay! You're… okay, I'm okay, we're all…" The older girl slumped on to her, nearly causing Ruby to fall over.

"I was so scared." She told her, "No one knew where you were, but I couldn't look for you because I needed to find Blake and—Blake!" Yang got to her feet and grabbed both her shoulders. "Ruby, where's Blake? Did she make it home with us? Is she…?" _Dead?_ The word hung in the air like a swarm of mosquitoes.

"I don't know," Ruby admitted, "I don't even know if—okay, she probably does since you remember, unless it's because your my sister or something or—"

"Ruby, what do you mean, 'remember'?" Yang interrupted, shutting Ruby up before she went too far.

"Um…" Her pointer fingers touched, "Well, I'm, uh, not really sure what's going on… but I just talked to Dad, and he said that the Vytal tournament isn't for six months, and then I realised that meant we've somehow never been to Beacon." She said, never pausing for a breath.

Yang mouth hung open, and she responded in the most appropriate way possible.

"What. The. Fu—"

"Yang! Language!" Dad yelled, walking towards the two. "Hey Rubes, you got a message. Thought I'd grab your scroll for you." With that, he tossed her scroll over.

"Anyway, I know you guys probably have plans for today, so I made some breakfast for you, and then I'll stay out of your hair." He ruffled Ruby's hair. She didn't even twitch.

"T-thanks Dad, we'll be right out." Yang said, her voice shaking. She offered him a weak smile. He noticed, and bent down to her level.

"Hey, don't worry about Beacon, alright?" He told her, grabbing her shoulder. "I know you'll do fine. Better than, you'll blow the socks right off everyone else."

"Um, thanks Dad." Yang said, "I'm going to…go get ready for our, uh, thing today. Yep, our wonderful, amazing thing." She elbowed Ruby, "Right Rubes?"

Distracted by her scroll, all Ruby did in response was nod.

"…See?"

Taiyang glared at Yang, but eventually sighed. "I'll see you at the table then." He started to walk away, but turned around. "Yang?"

"Yeah?"

"If there's anything I can help with, just ask, alright?"

Swallowing the sudden lump in her throat, Yang replied, "N-no problem."

He smiled, and then left to the kitchen. They both heard clangs as he pulled out plates and cups.

Turning around to face Ruby, Yang said, "Okay, what were you talking about?" Ruby didn't answer.

"Ruby?" Yang grabbed her little sister's shoulder, concern overtaking curiosity. "Ruby, what is it?"

Wordlessly, she showed Yang her scroll. There was a message on it, a message she began to read out loud.

"Ruby Rose, what in the world have you done? Signed, Weiss Schnee."


	2. Prolouge-Schnee Manor-Rewritten

The moment Ruby got to the top of the tower, Weiss dissolved the glyphs that propelled her and turned her attention towards the rapidly approaching swarm of Grimm. Despite the aches and exhaustion from the previous hour or two of fighting, she had lifted her sword and began jabbing and slashing her way through, Beowolves and Boarbatusks falling as fast as she could move.

Before long, the courtyard was once again clear. Weiss rammed Myrtenaster into the ground, and leaned heavily on the blade. She looked up at the tower, saw the flashes of light coming off the top. It appeared Ruby was battling whomever Pyrrha had went to fight.

Weiss tried to launch more glyphs on the wall, but as she raised her shaking hand, she realised that she wouldn't be able to help. Fighting through the robots, White Fang, and Grimm, along with summoning a giant sword had ripped away what strength she had. Grinding her teeth together, she put a hand to her stomach, but quickly drew it away when she felt something wet.

Pulling her hand upwards, she spat a rare swear at her blood soaked hand. The wound didn't feel critical, and she had some aura left to patch it up, but if it was bleeding then she was officially done. Any help she could offer to her team leader would be more dangerous to her than her opponent.

Ruby was up there, in danger, and all she could was stay out of her way. It made her blood boil, but sadly she lacked Yang's ability to draw strength from anger.

Oh God, _Yang._ Weiss had forgotten the blonde's lost arm. She didn't know what happened, but she remembered the bloody bandages circling her… stump.

Yang had a stump instead of an arm now. Despite the fact that she had stared at the girl until Ruby had caught up with them, Weiss still couldn't believe it. Yang, the person who relied on her hands more than anyone else on the team, was crippled. For life.

Weiss shook her head, and pulled her sword out of the ground. Her condition was too poor to fight, but she could still walk well enough to get out of the danger zone. Despite the cracks of gunfire from the city and the noise behind her, everything felt… quiet. No Grimm, no White Fang, no robots.

A roar sounded out from behind her, and she saw the dragon circling the tower. She could just barely make out orange and red flashes from the top, presumably Ruby and her opponent.

Again she wished to help, but what could she do? Ruby was the only person left who wasn't defending the evacuation site or, well, stumbling towards it.

Indeed, the best way to help Ruby was to keep her from worrying, let her focus on the fight. So she walked, or shambled, towards the bullheads.

Surprisingly, she arrived without incident. Blake and Yang were still lying next to each other, only now they were both unconscious. Weiss's breath hitched when she saw the small puddle of blood Blake was lying in, although the relatively clean bandages circling her stomach helped alleviate some of her worries. Sun was standing over the two, his hands on his hair.

"Sun?" She called out, making him turn to face her. He was pale and obviously scared out his mind, but a small smile broke through.

"Weiss! You're okay!" He said, elated, before his face clouded, "Where's Ruby?"

"She went after Pyrrha." She explained, sitting down next to Yang and Blake. "I got her up the tower, but then…" She raised a shaking hand. The blood was dry now, but still visible against her skin.

He nodded. Weiss turned her head to look at Blake, and the unhealthy colour of her skin.

"Are they okay?" She asked.

"I…" Sun started, before faltering. "I don't know. Just after you guys left Blake passed out, and then she started bleeding and… I mean, I tried to fix it but I don't know what I'm doing and she hasn't woken up—"

"Sun, stop." Weiss quickly checked over her teammates. "The bandages are fine. There's nothing more you can do, so don't…" She said, before she suddenly felt incredibly dizzy.

"Weiss!" Sun shouted, just before she fell to her feet. He rushed over to her side.

"I'm fine!" She insisted, "Really, I am. Just… need to sit down for a while…" A bullhead set down in front of her, spewing out half-dozen armed soldiers onto the ground. With the practiced motions typical of soldiers, they lifted ten or twelve injured students into their ship, and got back in the air in minutes.

She waited for a second ship to land, but none came. Far in the distance, Weiss could barely see the lights of a returning ship, but it would be several minutes before it arrived.

Several minutes she feared they did not have.

"Did you see Neptune?" Sun asked, pacing in front of her feet. His weapon was out now, although Weiss was certain if was for protection or simply something to do with his hands.

"No, I, we didn't see him." She said, still staring at the encroaching ship. "Although we weren't really looking all that hard." Then the reality of what he said caught up with her.

"You don't know where he is?"

He shook his head. "No, I'm hoping he got out, but I haven't seen him since the paladins, and since that's when the dragon thing came…"

An ear-splitting screech broke through the night sky. Weiss turned to face the tower, ignoring the pain that ripped through her side at the motion. Up at the top, she saw the dragon begin to attack, screaming like it was possessed.

Her heart skipped a beat when she saw some bright red flash.

"That's Ruby, isn't it?" Sun said.

It wasn't a question.

"Yes."

She lowered her gaze to the ground, staring at the destroyed tower, the craters, the smoking trees, Blake and Yang's prone forms, everything.

She started laughing, a quiet, broken laugh.

If she was standing, the view would be almost identical to her first day. The day she met Ruby, and Blake, and all her other friends. Her first, real friends.

"It's over, isn't it?" Sun said.

Weiss looked at him, preparing herself to either deny it or give conformation, she wasn't sure which, when her vision suddenly grew lighter.

Turning to the tower, she saw a huge explosion of light from the top of the tower. She raised an arm to block it, but it was no use.

Her vision quickly faded to white.

* * *

Of course, this meant that once she awoke, it took her a few seconds to realise anything had changed. The roof was nearly the same colour as her vision had become, but once she realised she was lying on a soft mattress rather than concrete, it became clear.

Slowly, she rose, gritting her teeth in anticipation of the pain that was assuredly about to follow. However, her ascent was only met with a few cracks as her joints stretched. Her sheets rustled as they fell off, landing in an inelegant pile on the ground.

Where was she?

Weiss took a look around the room, squinting her eyes at the sunlight streaming in through multiple windows. Once her eyes adjusted, she saw a balcony, combined with a view any artist would die for. A computer sat on top of a milky white desk, framed with small photos that she could not make out from her bed.

This was her room.

What was she doing in her room?

She got out of the bed, placing her bare feet against the cool floor. It didn't creak. She lifted up her skirt, just enough to check her stomach where she got her wound, but it was clean. No scab, no scar, it was as if the injury had never existed.

BEEP!

Her scroll sprang to life, blaring out an obnoxious beeping noise. She fumbled for the device, hands stiff.

Finally, she found her scroll, and smashed the off button. Her room became quiet once more, save for the sound of her breath. Her hand went to her side again, and she stared at the unmarred skin.

It wasn't impossible that the injury healed well enough to avoid leaving a scar, especially considering her family's wealth, but it would have required a visit to the hospital. Her father may have wanted to keep her at home, and if her injury's had been minor he most certainly would have, but the Schnee manor was simply not prepared for surgery or whatever medical treatment was used on her.

Walking over to her desk, Weiss picked up one of the photos on her desk. It was a photo of her, a year or so younger, standing in front of some house, Ruby at her side—

She dropped the photo, uncaring of the glass shards on the ground. Weiss started picking up photos at random, discarding them as fast as she was picking them up. The floor behind her was soon filled with dozens of picture frames, each one landing with a crack.

She saw photos of her, photos of Blake, photos of some blond guy, but mostly photos of her and Ruby, sometimes with the other members of her team. All of them had her doing things or going places she'd never heard of before, let alone been to.

Weiss stumbled back, absently activating her aura to protect her feet from the glass.

What was going on here? Did Father…? No, he couldn't have done this, even he couldn't manufacture a few dozen photographs, place them in her room, and then…

THUD!

Something hit the wall on her right. Weiss's hand went to where her sword would have been holstered, had she been carrying it. But she had no sword.

Well, she did manage to _summon_ a giant sword…

Weiss walked over and opened the doors, crouching the moment they began to swing open. Slowly, quietly, she crept out. She checked behind every corner, and every bush, but found nothing.

Reaching the edge, she leaned over the side. Below her was a tree, branches thick with leaves, beating against the wall.

Weiss sighed, amused at her own nerves. It was nothing more than a tree. Later, she'd let the gardeners know about it. Although finding one in the fall would be—

The leaves were green. Leaning over again, Weiss saw that the grass was still a bright and vibrant emerald as well. The sprinklers had turned on, spraying down everything in the yard with copious amounts of water.

The air still felt chilly, but it wasn't the steadily increasing cold that she'd been feeling over the past few weeks. Even in the brief time she had stood there, Weiss felt the sun warming her up, far more efficiently than fall would allow.

For a long moment, she stood there, on the balcony, barely breathing. Her whole body was rigid, not a finger twitching anywhere. Weiss wasn't afraid, exactly, but she certainly had no idea what to think. So she simply stared out into the city, hands gripping her nightgown hard enough to turn white.

An insistent beeping sound from her room drew her back in. Her scroll was the culprit, so she grabbed it and smashed her finger on the screen, intent on destroying the infernal machine once and for all. However, her fist was stopped by the words written across the top.

 _8:00, meet Father in office._

* * *

After dressing herself and picking up her weapon, Weiss made her way to her father's office. Her footsteps echoed in the hallway, as she never passed another person. She was…slightly creeped out. Although she couldn't remember there being many more people, the manor still felt empty, at least compared to Beacon. Normally there would be bodyguards, or servants, or at least some business men.

But today, she was alone when she reached the door to her father's office. Weiss raised a hand to knock, but held back. The moment she knocked, the moment she entered, she had to face her father. The father who could be less than pleased about her performance during the attack. Assuming the attack had actually happened, she was no longer certain of that.

Weiss let out a sigh. No point in waiting any longer. Twisting her face into a mask of neutrality, she raised her fist and tapped the dark wood in front of her. The sound echoed through the hall, insuring that Father heard the noise, no matter what he was doing.

Sure enough, after a few seconds of waiting, Weiss heard, "Come in." Taking a deep, steadying breath, she stepped into her father's office.

It was like much of the house, walls painted white, marble everywhere, but it was one of the few places that actually looked lived in. Father never let anyone else touch this room, and even with his talents for organisation, papers still piled up on every surface. The man himself was sitting in front of a computer monitor, set so that he could see the door even while working. There was two chairs in front of him, but Weiss didn't move to take one. She waited for him to finish whatever it was that had come up.

"Good morning Weiss," He said once he was finished, "Please, take a seat."

TSilently, Weiss complied. The seat was cold and old, with its ancient leather surface creaking.

"How was your sleep?" Father asked, the screen going blank.

"It was…fine."

"Good." He said curtly, "Do you remember what's happening tomorrow?"

Weiss slowly shook her head. "Um…no?"

"Hmph, of course not." He grumbled, "Too busy talking with your 'friends'."

Friends? What?

"At any rate, tomorrow you go to Beacon, as per your wishes."

For the second time that day, Weiss found herself frozen. Father continued to speak, but she was far away.

Going to Beacon? Tomorrow? How was that…what? Briefly the idea that everything she remembered had been some odd dream passed through her head, but Weiss dismissed it. No dream would be as detailed as the memories she had.

"And although I have my doubts about your skills," Weiss heard after refocusing on her father, "Your instructors have told me that you are, apparently, ready. I, however, wish to see this in person."

"Go to the training room, and await further instructions." He picked up a paper, "I'll be a few minutes."

Weiss nodded, and slowly left the room. Neither she nor her father looked at each other.

Once out, and after closing the door, she put her back to the wall and slid down, cupping her face with her hands.

Tomorrow she was going to Beacon.

Out of everything her father could have said, that was the absolute last thing she expected. It made a certain amount of sense; the season, and her lack of wounds. But how? How in the world was it even possible? Outside of movies and books, Weiss had never even heard of time travel before. She could manipulate how she perceived time with her glyphs, but not throw someone back or forward in time.

Letting out a deep breath, Weiss got to her feet. She might not know exactly what's going on, but she did know that keeping Father waiting was a bad idea.

* * *

The training room was originally built as a ballroom, back when networking meant lavish parties and generic music. However, aside from art carved into the walls themselves, very little remained of its origins. The old floor had been replaced with marble, with layers of steel and foam padding providing protection from Dust detonations. Fluorescent bulbs ran along the ceiling, harshly lighting her figure as Weiss took inventory.

She still remembered this fight from last time—still sounds weird—and wasn't terribly worried about winning it. After fighting giant birds, robots, chainsaw wielding terrorists, more robots, that crazy guy with the tuba, and enough Grimm to overwhelm a small country, a giant suit of armor felt almost… quaint.

She quickly glanced towards the wall, where she could see her father in the viewing area, seated near the glass. He showed no emotion, no acknowledgement of her.

Weiss pulled out her weapon, intent on looking it over before the fight. She hadn't had time to do so before now, having grabbed it from storage just before meeting Father. At first glance, it appeared normal. She lifted it up and slashed down, noting the weight and balance. All good, exactly as she remembered it.

It was once she spun the Dust chamber that she discovered the changes. Although it was never a struggle to switch Dust types, Weiss could usually feel the gears clicking as she switched. Now, beyond a light tap that told her it was in place, it felt smoother than the waxed floors beneath her.

Lifting the hilt up to examine it, she failed to see any apparent differences with the mechanism itself. It just spun, well, better.

There was a small difference on the hilt itself. On the guard, just out of sight, was two letters, carved into the metal.

 _R.R_

There was nothing else to the signature; the letters themselves were not written in any fancy font. It was just… there.

Of course, Weiss had a pretty good idea who had signed Myrtenaster, and if she was being honest, there was worse people to have unknowingly modified her weapon. But it was still a problem, one that she really did not need right now.

She huffed, and then moved her sword into position and waited.

She didn't wait very long.

THUD! THUD! THUD!

Moving slowly, carrying a giant sword, came the armor. Aside from its footsteps, and the clinks of its armor, it was completely silent. A few metres away from her it stopped, and mirrored her stance.

At first, neither of them moved. Weiss shifted her grip on her sword, and took deep, slow breathes. She could do this. Big as this thing was, she'd killed bigger.

The armor lifted its sword, and charged. Once it got close to her, it swung at her feet.

Weiss leaped over, angling her jump towards the armors head. She slashed at its neck, sending off a flurry of sparks. A few landed on her skin, her aura sizzling at their touch.

While she was still in the air, the armor threw a fist up, trying to punch her. Weiss quickly cast a glyph, both blocking the armors attack and allowing her to jump away.

Landing six or seven metres from her enemy, she held out her sword and concentrated. A pulsating glyph, adorned with four swords appeared at her feet. Tightening her grip, Weiss tried to remember what she did when she fought the paladin. She tried to remember what it felt like when she summoned the sword, but her mind drew a blank.

Her glyph fizzled out, just in time for her to catch the tip of her opponent's sword. The blow sent her sprawling across the floor, several metres away from her original position.

Scowling, Weiss returned to her feet. The armor jumped at her, sword swinging above its head, but she threw up a shield before it hit.

She cast another glyph underneath the armor, this one with red Dust. It exploded, and smashed the armor into the wall. When it fell to the floor, bits of rubble fell with it, along with a huge cloud of powdered marble.

Why didn't her summon work? Weiss thought she had it figured out, after all, she'd already done it once. Perhaps she needed to actually take some time and think through what happened against the paladin.

Her musings were interrupted by the thundering footsteps of the armor. Its free hand grabbed the handle, and it swung its sword up.

Weiss's sword collided with its blade, sparks flying from the impact. Placing a glyph on the sword, she _pushed,_ with her both arm and semblance, forcing the blade away from her. The armor tipped, nearly falling over.

Weiss leapt to its head, spinning Myrtenaster fast enough to blur it. She struck its head, its neck, and its back before she landed behind it.

The armor spun on its feet, the sword on a collision course with her skull, but Weiss vaulted over it as it passed, before lunging at its chest.

TWANG!

It stumbled back; a large dent clearly visible where she had hit it. In the very center laid a small hole, the only part that she managed to cut.

To the things credit, within seconds it was charging at her again, sword swinging away.

Weiss pulled up a glyph and froze its sword arm, unbalancing it enough to make it fall.

After skidding on the ground, it pushed itself to a standing position, and smashed its frozen hand into the floor, shattering the ice. It didn't charge, instead grasping it's sword with both hands and waiting. Presumably for her attack, at which point it would counter her blows and take her out.

Weiss smirked, and raised her sword to her chest. Tip pointed up, she closed her eyes and concentrated.

A yellow glyph, adorned with roman numerals and two hands lit up beneath her. She could feel the Dust from Myrtenaster flow out, powering the glyph.

Weiss opened her eyes. The air, the armor, everything seemed to be moving through quicksand. She took in a breath, smiling at how it felt like she was drinking the air through a straw.

Pulling her sword in front of her, Weiss sprinted towards the armor, almost as fast as Ruby could move. It tried to swing its sword at her, but it was far too slow.

Seconds before she reached it, Weiss threw herself over the armor with a glyph, slashing at its form as she rose.

Once she was hanging over its head, she launched herself off a glyph, sword cutting at the armors left arm. Just before she reached the floor, she cast another glyph, and attacked its neck.

She continued to throw glyphs, striking different parts of the armor each time. Metal shavings flew off with every blow, littering the ground with scorch marks wherever they landed.

However, after striking its neck and almost getting punched for her troubles, Weiss realised that her time dilation glyph was starting to wear off. The armor was beginning to rally—well, as much as it could considering its arms were about to fall off—so she needed to take it down now.

If she hadn't already tried it earlier, this would be the best time to try for her sword summoning again. A fitting coup de grâce, or at least an ironic one.

Weiss let out a sigh.

At least she still had one other option.

Jumping up and angling herself towards the armor with a glyph, Weiss cast one final glyph with a plentiful amount of ice Dust, right in front of her.

Quickly double checking to ensure her aim was accurate, she jumped towards her opponent's chest. Once she contacted the other glyph, her blade was encased in ice, forming a larger, flatter sword.

She thrust it right into the hole she created earlier, and lifted it up. The metal ripped open, all the way up to the head. At which point her ice sword decided it was enough, and shattered.

Already the armor had begun to dissolve, allowing her to fall through it and land neatly on the floor. The rapidly decaying corpse fell on her, wafting away to nothingness just seconds before it touched her.

Weiss looked up, towards the viewing area, attempting to gauge Fathers reaction. But he was already gone.

Quickly sheathing Myrtenaster, Weiss left the room.

She didn't look back.

* * *

Father had left her a message on her scroll, stating, "You pass." No words of encouragement, no acknowledgement of how she did. Just, "You pass."

Weiss tried not to think about it. Before, while her father had been cold and distant at times—okay, all the time—he still told her if she screwed up, and how to make it better. As good as her performance against the armor undoubtedly was, it was far from perfect.

Sighing, Weiss scrolled through her contact list. Father acting like a royal ponce was far from new, and quite honestly, she had other issues to deal with right now.

Like how she had Ruby, Yang, and Blake's numbers, despite the established time travel thing. What was the saying? Don't look a gift horse in the mouth?

She quickly tapped out a message, one that would hopefully clue Ruby in to her knowledge if she knew, but also not make her sound like a raving maniac if she didn't.

Weiss glanced at the clock. If she remembered correctly, she had about two, or maybe three, hours until her transport was ready to go. Should be more than enough time for her to pack.

Entering her room, she paused briefly by the mirror. Her face stared back at her, blue eyes wide open, mouth set into a hard line.

Tomorrow she was starting her training at Beacon. Again. It was… an odd thought, to say the least. Hopefully reconvening with her team would give her a chance to puzzle her situation out.

Still, the odds of Ruby or Yang or even Blake knowing anything about their situation struck her as incredibly unlikely. Blake and Yang passed out before she got transported, and Ruby…

Well, Ruby knew either nothing, or everything.

Weiss sighed, and left to pack.

* * *

Perhaps he was supposed to be happy.

His daughter, despite his concerns, had proven herself in combat. She pulled off an incredible performance, one far beyond what he believed was possible for her age.

But he couldn't see it that way.

All he could see, through the haze of the half-drained whisky bottle in his left hand, was his daughters face, smiling at him from the photo.

Right next to a girl with silver eyes.


	3. Prolouge-Patch, with added Blake-Rewrite

The steady drone of familiar voices awoke Blake. Her ears twitched freely in the warm air, brushing against silky fabric. The rest of her skin pressed against a rougher, but still oddly comfortable cloth, and she felt the heavy weight of the blanket resting upon her chest.

Bird's song flitted through the open window, bringing with it the smell of freshly bloomed flowers and early morning dew. Cool air tickled her face, goosebumps rising in response.

Her hand drifted towards her stomach, but stopped far before it reached her skin. For it found that, instead of her combat outfit, she was wearing her sleep wear.

Blake pushed herself up, eyes darting around the room. Instead of some hospital or ruin, it was a comfortable, clean, bedroom. Books lined the walls, shelves sagging under the weight. A closet stood against the far wall, shoulder to shoulder with an old desk, where a computer sat snugly on its surface. A hammock was slung from it to an open door.

There was nothing odd about the door, beyond its cream colouration, yet her eyes were locked on its knotted surface.

Without thought, her legs slid off the surface of the bed, planting themselves gently upon the floor. Her arms pushed behind her, and then she was up. Her jaw clenched in preparation for the pain to follow, but there was none.

Again, her hand went to her stomach, this time not slowed by her unusual clothing. It dived under the fabric, and pulled at the skin beneath. She ran her thumb around her front, brushing it against her ribs and her waist, but felt nothing but smooth skin. No dried blood, no scab, no scarring.

She pulled the black fabric away, head tilted downwards, and searched for a sign, any sign, of Adam's attack. Her eyes flew from the bottom of her chest to her very toes, but still she saw nothing. Not even a pale white mark.

A shaky breath passed through her lips, delving into the room with the same tepidness of the girl it had left.

 _What is going on?_

More voices crashed through the wooden door. Blake crouched, hands reaching for a weapon that was not there.

"No, I—I haven't seen her since… since Adam. I…" It was Yang's voice.

It was _Yang's_ voice.

A genuine smile came to Blake's lips, joy rushing through her veins and bouncing into her heart.

Yang was alive.

Yang was alive!

Part of her wanted to rush out through the door, and pull her partner into a hug she would never escape from. The other, more rational part, warned her to stay back. It could be a trap, it argued. Whoever screwed with Yang's head might be trying to get her now.

(She might not want to see you)

Pressing her teeth tightly together, Blake crept towards the door. Her feet barely brushed against the wood, leaving a sound that even she struggled to hear.

Ruby's voice was the next to come to her ears. "Well, we gotta find her. If she… if she remembers, than… I don't know, but we have to find her."

Remember? Remember what?

Remember how Adam cut off Yang's arm because of her? Remember how her stupid obsession with Torchwick helped nothing?

Her feet slowed her to a halt.

It was all her fault, wasn't it? Adam attacked Yang to get to her. If she hadn't been there, if Blake hadn't gotten her caught up in her stupid crusade, then maybe she wouldn't have lost her arm.

Now… now she was still in danger, wasn't she? Wherever they were, whatever had happened to them since Beacon, Adam was still out there. He still wanted her to suffer, and would attack her teammates to do so.

Attack Yang.

Blake backed away from the door. She stumbled to the closet, and gently tore the doors open. Her clothes were stacked there, neat as could be, and the sheer oddness made her pause.

"I'll go get dressed, and then… then we'll figure something out, alright?"

Ice ran through her veins, and she threw the first clean set of clothes on. It was an old hoodie and sweatpants combo, and there was no sign of her weapon or ribbon, but there wasn't time to worry about that. She had to get out, get out before Yang came through that door.

Before she convinced her to stay.

The open window provided an easy exit point. It was a bit of a drop, but for a huntress, it might has well have been a foam pit. Her feet kicked up small clouds of dirt, reaching her eyes and earning a few drops of salty liquid.

Standing up, Blake shot one last look at the window, and ran off into the forest.

* * *

It didn't take her long to realise she was on an island.

There was the smell, of course, salty brine mixed with rot. It sank deep into her bones, and it would take weeks for her to stop smelling of it.

More conclusively, when she climbed a tree to gain her bearings, she could see ocean for miles around, and a small town a short distance away. (And a house, but she didn't look at that)

Letting out a sigh, Blake slid down the worn trunk. The grass ruffled under her feet as she landed, earning a pause as she strained her ears for any sign of trouble.

She hated this. Hated being out here, unarmed and lacking any knowledge of where she was. Part of her wanted to go back, at least so that she could get a map, but that would mean talking to, or at least seeing Yang and Ruby again.

Blake didn't think she could do that.

Nothing moved in the forest, and she set off at a brisk walk. Trees leered at her, branches draped in greenery and shadows. The forest was almost as dark as a cave, nearly all of the sunlight trapped by the leaves above. She had night-vision, yes, but even a faunus required some light to see.

Still, the darkness unnerved her. The leaves that created it were still fresh and green, even though they were well into fall. Birds flew from tree to tree, including some she knew were migratory. The air felt warm against her skin, and the sun moved at a lazy trot, not with the growing haste of the past few weeks.

It didn't make sense. Unless the island was on the equator, there was no reason for it to be like this. There could be some kind of underwater volcano screwing with the weather, but she hadn't heard of anything like that, at least not in Vale.

Assuming she was still in Vale.

Something snapped, deep within the darkness.

Blake picked up the pace.

* * *

When she reached the town, and saw the weathered sign proudly declaring it to be 'Patch', Blake began to put the pieces together.

She was on Patch; the island Yang and Ruby said they were from. She had awoken in a house. Yang and Ruby were in that house. Ergo, she had been in Yang's house.

Now all she had to do was figure out why and how.

Someone clearly must have taken her from the school, but why wouldn't they—whoever they were—deliver her to a hospital? Unless the hospital was overrun, or damaged beyond repair.

A shudder ran through her. That was a thought she did not want to think about.

Regardless of why, whoever it was must have been familiar with Yang's family. That struck most of the people she knew off the list, except one.

Qrow Branwen, their uncle.

Blake herself had never actually met him, but she knew he was at the school. She heard about the fight between Winter and him, and of course, Ruby had told her. Still, somehow they never crossed paths.

So why would he bring her here? Did he do it for Yang? Did he think that she would want her there? Didn't he understand the danger to his niece? Maybe he didn't know about Adam. Maybe all he knew was that she was with Yang, clutching her hand like a lifeline just before she passed out.

A ships horn drew her from her thoughts. Her head whipped upwards, staring into the quiet streets of Patch. A quiet sigh fell from her lips, and she began to walk forward.

It didn't matter how she got here.

She knew she couldn't stay.

* * *

The issue with being on an island is that there is very few options to get off one. Either you fly, which wasn't a choice for Patch, or you take a boat.

And in order to get on a boat, you need a ticket.

To get a ticket, you have to talk to people.

And she didn't have her ribbon.

Blake was standing on the very edge of the town proper, hidden behind a wall. Her head darted out, glimpsing at the writhing mass of people.

Human. All of them.

Panic settled in, her heart thrashing wildly. She couldn't do this, couldn't go out there, ears uncovered. Said appendages huddled to her skull, clearly in agreement.

So then what? Did she go back, risk Adam finding her partner?

A chill spread through her. No, no she couldn't do that.

Blake took a deep breath, and slowly rounded the corner. Every step was like grinding nails with her teeth, with the shadowing cover of the buildings beckoning her towards them. Still, she pressed on.

Her muscles clenched, poised for the looks, the harassment, perhaps even violence. If they did attack, she was confident in her ability to fight them off, but it would create unnecessary complications.

She waited, and waited, yet nothing happened.

There was a few looks, yes, but they were barely more a few seconds long, the viewers identifying her, and, satisfied with their conclusion, turned away. No one started shouting "Filthy Faunus!" or any of the other many colourful titles people like her had.

Blake continued walking, but she was in a daze. Perhaps recent events made her a little jaded, but nothing? Not a single sneer, or out-stretched leg, just… _nothing._

Impossibly, she blended in.

Her breath thundered in her ears, palms growing wet. Her hands took shelter within the pockets of her hoodie, huddling together like penguins.

Up ahead was a small building, two windows and a door, sitting next to the docks. Seagulls swarmed above the ground, chewing at half-eaten food and old garbage. A ship was parked, sailors unloading large boxes of food and Dust from its depths.

She had to be able to get tickets there. Blake walked faster, arriving at the building within seconds.

The smell of freshly brewed coffee greeted her the moment Blake opened the door. Her eyes landed on peeling paint and a heavily scuffed floor, but as the door swung shut behind her, it made no noise, beyond the ringing of a bell.

Blake swallowed down her apprehension, and walked up to the counter. Maps and brochures littered the surface, and she moved to pick one up before something stirred.

To the right, a door swung open, revealing a portly man, a large box pressed against his head. He walked past her, carrying the box to the front, where he set it down with a large crash.

Another lump swelled in her throat. Blake let out a cough, and said, "E—excuse me, sir? I—I need to speak with you about—"

"Just a minute, Blake."

…Did he just say her name?

Blake's eyes remained locked on his back as he tore into the box, and pulled out a large poster. He pushed it against the windows, sticking tape against each corner.

When he was done, he turned to her and broke out in a large smile. "Good morning, young lady. Getting an early start?"

Something was terribly, terribly wrong, but all Blake could do was say, "Uh—yeah, early start. I… I need a ticket." _Before I go any crazier than I already am._

His grin grew wider, if that was even possible. "Not a problem. Heading to Vale?"

Her stomach performing cartwheels, Blake nodded.

"Ah, getting an early start on Beacon? Great school, never been there myself, but…" his voice continued to ramble, but she couldn't understand a word he said.

Her eyes wide open, Blake leaned forward. "Did—did you say Beacon?"

"Hm?" He looked up. "Yes, of course. You're enrolling there, aren't you? It's been the talk of the town!"

Now her stomach felt like it was attached to Ruby's scythe, and she was spinning fast enough to blur. She gripped the counter hard enough to peel off the paint, her legs rooting themselves to the floor.

He never noticed her reaction, as he had bent down, beneath the counter. "Not many locals ever make it that far, especially not two at once. Make us proud, alright?"

Beacon? Going to? Local? What? What was happening? Her head spinning, all Blake could do was offer a light nod. He couldn't see it, but that didn't seem to matter.

He rose back into view, and placed three small slips of paper in front of her. "Here you are. Figured the other two would be joining you, so I got extra's. Don't worry about paying me back, you just remember little old me, alright?"

She didn't think she could promise anything right now, but her head lowered. "Uh, sure. I'll—I'll remember. Um, what's your—what's your name? Again?"

He let out a deep, booming laugh, slapping his knee and letting his hand rest. A quiet, unsteady chuckle fell from Blake's lips, sounding fake even to her own ears.

"Ah! Good one!" He wiped away tears and regarded her with crinkled eyes. "Well, Miss Belladonna, it's Hai. Think you can remember that this time, or should I write it down?"

Another chuckle passed by dry lips. Blake pushed off the counter, hands clenching in on themselves. "Um, no, I'm… I'm good, thanks. I… I should be going."

Still grinning, he—Hai picked up the tickets and held them out. "Don't forget these!"

Trying, and failing to mimic his expression, Blake ripped the tickets from his hands and jammed them into her pocket. Trying to keep her panic from showing, she turned and walked—albeit quickly—out the door.

* * *

Behind a dumpster a few blocks away, Blake let it out. She crashed against the metal walls, completely ignoring the substances sticking to her hoodie.

What just happened? What was he talking about? None of it made sense. Beacon was gone, wasn't it? Destroyed, reduced to rubble, ruined. Yet Hai… Hai talked about it like it was still standing, like she was still a student there.

Except… she wasn't. He… he talked like she hadn't been there yet, but that was… impossible, wasn't it?

Ice ran through her veins. Blake stumbled to her feet, arms reaching out to brace herself. Her mind drifted back, hauling up each detail of the conversation.

Local.

Beacon.

Two.

If… if this was what she was fearing it was, then he wouldn't know Ruby would be going to Beacon. Which left Yang, and…

Her.

The alleyway spun, Blake barely managed to keep her footing. That… that couldn't be right. She wasn't from Patch, had never even _been_ to Patch before. How could she possibly be a local? She—she needed answers, needed to find out what was going on. But… how?

A quick check to her pockets confirmed what she already suspected—she didn't have any money on her. Her fingers came out vibrating, shaking like a leaf caught in a storm. Without money, without Beacon, without the White Fang, she had no hope of surviving within the city. Starvation, police, all would kill her long before Adam got his claws into her.

Which… which only left one option.

One, single option.

Her stomach heaved at the thought, but she grit her teeth and stood, pushing herself away from the dumpster. The buzz of the town returned to her ears, crashing into her like an alarm clock.

Her eyes darted around the streets, and landed on a small dirt path. Taking in a deep breath, Blake set out, and started walking back to Yang's house.

* * *

Looking at it from the outside, Yang actually had a nice house. It looked like a log cabin, but Blake could see the mortar between the brown, and the windows would require framing that simple logs couldn't provide. Light danced through said windows, throwing small patches of orange upon the grass.

It looked peaceful, warm, homey.

And utterly terrifying.

Blake stood, hidden by the trees, for what felt like hours. Despite the warm air, she felt like she was in a freezer. Her hands dug into the nearest trunk, bark burrowing under her nails.

She let out a shaking breath. This… this was a bad idea. She shouldn't have come back. The tickets were still in her pocket, she could have left, easily.

But she hadn't. She hadn't, and now she had to face her team. Blake's eyes shifted from the house to her arm, resting on her elbow.

Or what was left of them, at any rate.

Her breath evened out, and Blake moved towards the door with a fast trot. Dread set in on her mind with the subtlety of a grenade, and she battled the impulse to run back towards the forest. She was a huntress; her own team wasn't going to scare her.

The door came up, and before she could lose her nerve, Blake rapped her hand against the smooth wood three times. The sound crashed through her ears, earning a wince.

For a moment, there was nothing. Blake resisted the urge to knock again, keeping her hands rigid at her side. Were Yang and Ruby even home? Or had they gone out? What if they were looking for her?

Blake's thoughts were interrupted by a crack as the door swung open. The smell of syrup and frying meat slammed into her, reminding her that she hadn't eaten anything that day.

Yet, somehow, she didn't care. Her mouth dropped open, eyes landing on a brilliant circle of violet.

Slowly, other parts came into focus. Cheeks with just the smallest hint of red, and a lightly pointed chin, and blonde hair that could only belong to her partner.

Yang's hand drifted up, brushing against Blake's arm like she wasn't sure she was real. "Blake?"

Tears welling in her eyes, Blake gave a nod. "H-hey, Yang."

Blake's hands started shaking. "I—I'm so, so sorry, for—for everything. I—"

She was cut off when Yang wrapped her arms around her, and pulled her tightly against her body. "You remember," she breathed, placing her head on Blake's shoulder. "You remember, and you're here, and—I was so worried—"

Blake pushed away from her partner, staring at her with wet eyes. "Worried? Yang, I—it's my fault. It's my fault Adam—"

Yang's lips broke out in a large grin, and she lifted her arms, placing them on her shoulders.

She lifted her arms.

Arm _s._

Both of them.

Her heart thundering in her chest, Blake stared wide-eyed at Yang's arm. She brought a finger up, and pressed it into the skin. "It's—it's still—"

Yang pulled her back in, her arms threading under Blake's arms. "I'm fine, Blake. I'm… I'm so, so glad you're here."

It… it was too much. Blake couldn't respond, couldn't speak, could barely think. Her head fell on Yang's shoulder, soaking her shirt with tears. She wrapped her arms around her chest; confirming that, yes, she was still here.

Yang was okay.

Yang was okay.

A squeal rang out from farther within the house, just before Ruby crashed into the two huntresses with the force of a truck. Blake felt another pair of arms wrap themselves around her. "Blake!" Ruby shouted, squeezing tight enough to crack ribs. "Blake! Blake! You're here!"

A laugh ripped itself from Blake's lips. She brought her arms away from Yang, and curled them around Ruby. "Yeah, I… I guess I am."

Ruby pulled away, vibrating with barely contained joy. Yang let out a laugh, and pulled her sister and Blake in, enveloping both in a giant bear hug.

Blake's face felt like an overused elastic, but the grin wouldn't leave her. Her eyes slid shut as she drank in their glee, her heart hammering away within her chest.

There was nowhere on the planet she would rather be.

* * *

Ruby drained the rest of the glass, her eyes locked on its transparent depths. "So… yeah. Then you showed up, and Yang hugged you, and I hugged you—"

The table shifted as Yang kicked her sister under the table. "Pretty sure she knows about that."

Ruby blushed, even as she winced in pain. "Y-yeah, sorry. Wasn't thinking—"

"It's fine," Blake said. Her eyes glanced around the kitchen, sweeping around the table they were seated at. "Should we be worried about your dad?"

Yang shook her head. "Nah, he's in the bathroom. He'll… he'll be there for a while."

Ruby gave her sister a cold look. "What did you do…?"

Yang held her hands up, palms outward. "Nothing! He's just shaving."

Another laugh bubbled up in Blake's chest. A smile still plastered on her lips, she brought her glass up and took a sip. She brought it down, and gave a small cough. "So… we all just…- woke up here?"

Ruby frowned, and nodded. "Pretty much, yeah. Weiss… I don't know what's going on with her, but I got a message from her this morning, and I kinda think she knows, but…" She looked down and let out a sigh.

Yang frowned, and placed a hand on her arm. "Hey, don't worry about it. You remember, I remember, Blake remembers, that's three already."

Ruby smiled, and grabbed her sister.

Blake felt a small shard of envy bury its way into her heart, but smiled, and said, "It'll be fine, Ruby. Don't worry about it."

"Yeah…" Ruby drew her chest in, and brought her head up. "Yeah, you're right. She's got to. I mean, she's my partner, of course she does."

Frowning, Blake leaned forward. "Do we have any idea what's happened? Or why it seems to only be affecting us, or why… why things have changed?"

Startled, Yang looked at her with narrowed eyes. "Changed? How?"

Her throat suddenly dry, Blake took another sip of water before she answered. "When… when I was… out, I talked to a guy, and… he… he kinda sounded like he knew me. Like I… Like I lived here."

Silence reigned as what she said sank in. Violet and silver eyes remained locked on Blake, and she felt the urge to hide. Instead, she looked down, staring at her fidgeting feet.

Yang leaned forward, hands going up in front of her like a wrecking ball. "For how long?"

Blake swallowed, and gave Yang a long look. "He didn't say, but… A long time. A few years, at least."

Yang tilted her head, eyes narrowed. "A… A few years? That… that doesn't make sense."

Blake closed her eyes, and rested her head against the table. "I know," she admitted. "I know. Even if… even if it's what we think, then…"

"How'd it change that?" Ruby finished, leaning back in her chair. "None of this makes sense."

Yang reached over, wrapping her arm around Ruby's shoulder. "Don't worry about it, Rubes." She turned her head, and flashed a brilliant smile towards Blake. "I mean, it's not exactly a bad thing."

Warmth spread through Blake's chest. Her lips curved upwards, and she fought to supress a blush.

Ruby frowned. "Still, we need to find out what changed. If… if it goes back far enough, maybe… maybe Mom's…"

Yang looked away, biting her lip. "I… maybe, Rubes. Maybe."

She let out a sigh, and looked upwards.

"Think I know where to start."

* * *

They searched through her room—not Blake's, not the Blake skimming through her favorite books, but the Blake who had lived here. The Blake who seemingly lived with Ruby and Yang.

It wasn't easy. Blake's "help" didn't provide much, as they had never learned how to conduct a proper search. Or how to survive one. Ruby did an admirable job on the computer, as in she had deduced that the password was not "tun f1sH", "C t3ars" or "C tf1$h". Yang tore through the closet, and managed to find Blake's weapon.

Admittedly, that was very helpful.

Mostly, what they did was keep her distracted. Ruby was unusually quiet, leaving her sister to provide small talk. It wasn't terribly captivating, but her running commentary on activities in Patch the three of them could do kept her from thinking. All she had to do was read book titles, flip pages, and carry on.

It lasted like that until something forced her hands to a screeching halt. It was a black book, vinyl cover with a plastic wrapping, and a thick layer of dust sitting on its surface.

It also had a picture of the four of them, standing against a blue sky. Yang had one arm around Ruby, and the other making bunny ears at her front. Behind Ruby stood Weiss, hands behind her back and very pleased with herself.

And then… she was there. Behind Yang, dressed in her combat outfit and looking like she was half asleep. But it was her. It was her, and a little date in the bottom right hand corner said the photo was almost a year old.

A year old.

A _year_ old.

It hadn't felt real yet. It still didn't, really, like Blake was still expecting to wake up in a hospital and discover this was all some pleasant but impossible dream. But the photo, the photo was real. It was there, she couldn't deny that.

This was real.

Blake's grip on the book grew tighter, the spine crackling under the strain. Her eyes grew unfocused. She tried to speak, but her voice broke apart into the air. She tried again, "I…I think you should see this."

Yang turned her head from the closet, pulling away from the wooden depths. "Yeah? Something good?"

A lump blocked Blake's throat. She gave a nod.

Ruby leapt from the chair and to her side, flinging rose petals across the bed. She spewed out words almost faster than Blake could hear. "Really? What is it?"

Blake took in a quick breath, and lifted the book. "It's a… I think it's a diary or something. It's… it has us on the front."

"Really?" Yang said, and then stretched out her arms. "Can I have a look?"

Blake nodded again, and dropped the book into her partner's arms. Yang flipped it, and took a long look. Ruby ran to her side, staring at the same space.

Yang brought the book down, and stared at Blake with wide eyes. "I remember this place," she said, her finger dancing on the photo. "Way back, we went to some dumb Vytal festival celebration thing, and… Dad took pictures of me and Rubes."

Ruby let out a soft gasp, and leaned even closer towards the photo. "I remember that day! I won a stuffed Ursa, and you… you _tried_ to win something…"

Yang let out a soft chuckle, her lips curving upwards at the memory. "Yeah, some kind of weird toy." Her head turned, and landed on Blake.

"But you weren't there."

Blake's throat suddenly felt dry, her heart pulsating with a cold beat that pushed goosebumps through her skin. She wanted to run, to hide, to laugh, to cry, to scream, to never speak another word again.

So she did nothing. Just stayed there, catatonic, as Ruby and Yang's eyes filled with worry.

Nothing she knew was the same. Her whole life, as full of regrets and anger and hate as it was, gone. Destroyed, demolished, like it had never existed. In return, a different Blake, a Blake that went to a festival, and posed with Yang and Ruby for a picture, was gone.

Dead.

Ruby's eyes glimmered as she laid a hand on Blake's shoulder, and slowly shook. "Blake? You… okay?"

A spark roared through Blake's limbs, waking her from her stupor. She blinked, slowly, then faster, and her mind reconnected with the present. Her head bobbed. "Y-yeah, yeah I'm good. Just… a little shocked."

Yang let out a strained laugh, like a violin's last note before it snapped. "Really? Never would have guessed."

Blake mirrored her laugh, adding the screech of an amateur. She moved a hand to her head, trying brush her hair, but it got caught halfway through. She didn't feel like moving it, so she didn't.

Ruby's scroll dinged before Blake started ripping her hair out. She shot them both an apologetic look before pulling the device out, and tapping a quick number on its screen. "It's Weiss," she said, as if that explained everything.

Apparently, it did for her sister, who immediately gained an enviable level of focus and calm. "What'd she say?"

Ruby kept her eyes on the machine as she replied, "Uh… she wants to meet us at a restaurant somewhere in Vale… uh… at fiveish?"

Yang let out a sigh. "Where is this mystical restaurant?"

Ruby rolled her eyes, even as her skin turned pink. "Not sure. She sent the address though."

"Good enough," Yang said, and then shot up so fast that she must have gotten whiplash. She stuck out a hand towards Blake. "Come on, we… we should get moving."

Ruby followed her sister's lead, albeit at a slower pace. She gave Yang a quizzical stare, eyes flickering between apps on her scroll. "I don't think it's that far—"

"Do you have a car that can fit all three of us?"

Ruby's glued lips and darting eyes served as an answer.

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

Hearing Yang's teasing tone helped ground Blake. It was amazing how she managed to slip back into a normal conversation, a normal problem when the giant elephant was resting on the floor. Far better than her method.

Blake grabbed the offered hand and pulled herself up.

Yang's hand lingered a moment longer than was necessary. Her thumb rubbed the back of Blake's palm, like she still couldn't believe that it was real.

Then she sharply drew away, sucking in a breath before speaking. "So, uh… probably going to walk, so… if you need different clothes…"

Blake brought a hand to her hoodie, frowning at the thin fabric. "Probably not a bad idea."

"Right, so… meet us downstairs?"

Blake nodded.

Yang gave her a soft smile, and then walked out, dragging Ruby behind her. She closed the door, and brought silence to the room.

Blake let out a long breath, and went to get changed.


	4. Reunion

Patch, being one of the only places on Remnant where people could experience nature in relative safety, had a prosperous tourism industry. Thousands of people came there every year, and they all needed a way onto the island.

That was where the ferries came in. A fleet of gleaming steal ships, armed with dozens of cannons, machine guns, and all the depth charges an aspiring huntress and unrepentant weapons nut could ever want. The thrill was not dampened by the fact that she had seen this exact arsenal before.

Literally.

Yang and Blake had went off to buy some food, and had left her with the firm instruction to not sneak down to meet all the guns. ("It happened once!" "Yeah, and we were thrown off the ship! Before we docked!") Leaving her to plan.

Obviously, they had time traveled.

Because of this, things had changed.

Therefore, first thing she had to do was to figure out what had changed and what hasn't!

…Which was harder that it looked when she had barely paid attention to the news.

She had a plan though! She was going to go to the dust shop, wait, and then when Torchwick showed up, she'd take him down and… something.

Hey, she'd only been awake for a couple hours.

Still, thinking about a bad plan was better than thinking about them _._

She saw them, every time she closed her eyes. Pyrrha, struck down by Cinders arrow. Penny's corpse lying on the ground. Yang missing an arm, out cold on the ground. Beacon torn to rubble. Her fault, all of them. Jaune was screaming at her. Why? Why didn't she save them? She was a huntress, wasn't she? She should have known it was Cinder; when Yang had apparently attacked Mercury she should have went over and found out what had happened. She should have trusted her; should have known something was wrong! It never should have gotten as far as it did!

The safety railing she was holding onto suddenly collapsed under her, nearly causing her to trip into the waves below.

It didn't happen. Not anymore. Now she could change _everything_. _No one_ was dying now.

Yang and Blake were sure taking a while, weren't they? She should probably go find them before someone asks where the railing had went.

* * *

Away from the open streets, Blake found herself relaxing. At this time of day, the ferry only had the commuter's and die hard tourists.

Yang had pulled her to the on-board restaurant, and away from Ruby. Blake had hoped for a few minutes that it was just to help carry food, but no such luck.

"Spill," Yang had sat them both down at a table.

"What are you talking about? "

"Come on Blake, I know you. You're acting all 'Blakey' again. More than usual, I mean."

Blake rose an eyebrow, "What about this situation is usual, Yang? I see you get _crippled,_ then I wake up at your house and apparently, we live together; my entire past is different; and it's nearly six months in the past! Sorry for being a little 'Blakey'."

She went too far. Yang just sat there, staring at her. She looked away, tears already flowing.

"Yang, I'm sorry, it's just been…"

She felt an arm on her shoulder.

"It's ok, I get it. I shouldn't pry. I… I just feel useless right now. Ruby's already trying to figure out what to do next and, no offense, you're a train wreck, and I'm completely useless at this…"

"I'm not a train wreck."

"Blake, I'm sorry. I…" She buried her head into her arms, "This whole thing just been so... so crazy! It feels like we haven't had a chance to catch our breath since we woke up, everything's moving so fast and yet, yet nothing's happened. I just, I don't know what we're going to do."

Blake moved over to her side, tentatively gripping her far shoulder. Yang felt almost feverish, her hair burning hot.

"We've got to stop Cinder, and then…" _Oh what the hell._ She hugged Yang, burying into her hair. She smelt of sunflowers.

"Then let's just sleep for a while, if that's alright with you."

She felt Yang squeeze her waist, nearly lifting her out of her chair. She didn't feel as warm now.

"Yeah, a cat-nap sounds like a pretty good idea."

Did hitting her actually do anything? No, but it certainly made her feel better.

"Hey come on! It was claw-some!"

Much, much better.

* * *

As it turns out, getting from Atlas to Vale in any reasonable time was nearly impossible, even for a Schnee. No amount of money could push the Schnee airship, a modified Atlas scout ship with an included office, could push it any faster.

At least it gave Weiss time to rifle through the newspapers and archives on-board the ships CCT connection, and search for clues to what had changed with her travel. So far, it seemed like very little.

Most were identical to before; Vale was suffering from a crime spree, the Vytal festival was in a few months. The train robbery, however...

She remembered how it had happened before. The train was attacked, large number of security droids destroyed, but the crew was fine.

The article she was reading detailed how the cars, "Looked like the interior of a haunted house."

"Oh Blake, you stopped him last time, didn't you?" She whispered, leaning back from the screen. After almost an hour of reading, her neck was starting to ache.

She had figured that the attacks would have been more brutal if one of their own had decided to switch sides, but she had forgotten about this. She wasn't sure if Blake had ever told her exactly what she had done with the White Fang, but it made sense if she had been at the train.

Still, as horrible as it was, it provided a clue as to what happened. If everything else was the same, which it appeared to be, then the only change was her being in Patch that day and meeting her future, or former, or something team.

But why had that happened? She found some records that her father had a meeting there on that day, but it didn't say with who or why. Because of the town only having tourism and Signal to draw in business, the Schnee company had only ever set up a shop within the town limits.

She got up and walked to the viewing room, deciding to wait out the rest of the trip in relative peace. Vale was a much more appealing city to look at this time, although maybe that was simply because of much better she was feeling.

The last time she had boarded the airship for Beacon, her father and Winter had been there to see her off. It was small miracle, considering their feelings towards each other. This time, Father had been nowhere to be seen.

Winter on the other hand…

"Winter!"

She had been standing right next to the airship door, staring at the logo on the side when she had approached. She wasn't wearing her uniform, instead wearing a thick sweater and jeans. Somewhat disconcerting, but it was the normal kind. She had seen her rarely wear this type of clothing before.

"Weiss, it's good to see you. I hear you're finally heading to Beacon with your friends, correct?" she said with a…smile? Was she openly smiling at her, in public?

"Um, yes, I am." Weiss said, standing next to her. Of all the people she was wondering if they had changed, Winter frightened her the most. After her mother had disappeared, or died or whatever had happened, she was pretty much the only friendly face Weiss could count on.

"Good." Winter said, and then she turned around, "I expect to see top marks from you. Work hard, prove yourself, and… just be safe, ok?"

Then she laughed.

"Try not to let Ruby eat a whole box of cookies again, will you?"

She hugged her, making Winter question if she was feeling all right. She answered by laughing and crying into her shoulder for nearly ten minutes. She was better than OK, her sister was still her sister, and despite all the craziness of the day, she knew it was going to be fine.

…Although clearly she had spent too much time with Ruby if Winter knew about her cookie addiction.

* * *

The Mountain Glenn memorial park didn't look like what you'd think a park would really look like. It didn't have any plants; rather, it had a giant concrete platform. That was about it. Luckily for Ruby, Blake, and Yang it also had a lovely little bistro, and its owners were surprisingly willing to let three heavily armed, slightly crazy looking teenagers just sit there for hours on end. Usually there was rules about that kind of stuff.

They were all sitting at an outdoor table, Yang leaning back, Ruby messaging Weiss, and Blake discovering the depth of her scrolls library.

"So… anyone else think we may have jumped the gun a bit?" Yang asked, her chair nearly tipping over.

"I'm sure she'll show up Yang, it's only been," Ruby checked her scrolls time, "…two hours."

Blake looked up from her reading, "She does live in another country. Even flying, it's probably a few hours flight."

"Four hours, fifty-five minutes, to be precise."

"WEISS!"

For the second time that day, Ruby and Yang launched themselves into a spine shattering hug. Unlike their dad, Weiss wasn't quite as stable on her feet. They hit the ground in an undignified pile.

She couldn't find the energy to care though.

"…and that's when I woke up at home. After that, we found out Blake's living at our house, and then we came out here," Ruby explained.

After Weiss had managed to get out from the teammate sandwich, she demanded that Ruby explain what exactly had happened. Now she sat across from her, writing down everything she said like it was the cure to cancer. By the time Ruby had finished, the sun was little more than a sliver.

"Cinder did it then? All of it?" Blake asked, not noticing how she was crushing the plastic fork.

"It makes sense, doesn't it? The CCT, that message, and… Penny and Pyrrha." Ruby said.

"So what are we doing about it then?" Everyone turned to Yang.

"What? I know you're all thinking about it." Said Yang, gesturing to her team.

"We've got a chance to stop all of that from happening, don't we? I mean, aside from us, everything seems the same."

"She's right," Weiss spoke up, pulling out a different set of notes, "I found some news reports, my father stores them all on the CCT network, and the only event's that have seemed to have changed are what we were involved in."

She glanced at Blake. _Don't ask about the train. Don't ask about the train._

"So we can stop her," Yang stood up, "We just got handed the best second chance anyone has ever gotten, we can't just let it go to waste!"

Blake spoke, "What if it does something though? I want to do something too Yang, but shouldn't we focus on figuring out what happened?"

Yang smiled and threw her arm around Blake, "Ah, but that's the thing! This all started because of Cinder, right? Even the time travel thing. So the only way to figure out what happened…"

"Is to track her down." She pushed Yang's arms away and looked down.

"I'm just… last time, we barely survived the train and Adam and I'm just worried that if we try and change things, we're going to wind up hurt or worse."

"Blake," Ruby's voice was low (for her standards) and steady, and her silver eyes bore straight through her.

"We're huntresses; this is what we signed up for. It's… weirder than what we expected, but it's what we have to do. I'm not just going to sit there while a maniac attacks my friends." She looked down.

"I saw Pyrrha die. She looked right at me, _and I did nothing._ That isn't going to happen again. I, we are not going to freeze up just because we're scared, OK?"

"…Alright. What's the plan then? Do we go to the police? Ozpin?"

"Tell them what, we time traveled?" Weiss was pocketing her notebook, "We'll either be laughed out or put in the loony bin."

"Besides, if what we know got out, what would be the point to having it?"

"OK," Ruby pulled out her scroll, "I'll make a list, what do we need to do to stop Cinder? Any suggestions?"

"We need to stop the White Fang," Blake scooted closer to Ruby.

"Then we have to stop the train." Yang typed it out over her shoulder.

"Don't forget about Torchwick." Weiss this time, forgoing her chair.

"Then… then we stop her." Ruby said, saving the list.

She stood up, "So! Who's ready to become time traveling huntresses on a mission to stop a horrible future-oh crap."

"Ruby, what's wrong?" asked Yang.

"Torchwick's going to rob the dust store in thirty minutes! Come on!" She ran off, forgetting that the rest of her team was not capable of keeping pace.

Weiss groaned, "Of course, only Ruby could be late to a robbery," she stormed off.

"Let's just get there before she craters the place."

* * *

Twenty minutes later, they found themselves spread out through the store, pretending to be _incredibly_ interested in the piles of dust. Yang had just finished rechecking the potency of their fire dust for the fifth time before she finally walked over to the magazine rack, where Ruby was reading a weapons catalog.

"Are you sure they show up here?"

Ruby glared at her.

"Just checking."

She sighed, "I don't know exactly when they had showed up! I was reading!

"Would you two quiet down! I doubt he'll show up if he can hear us!" Weiss growled from the next isle.

"Oh, like you're not bored out of your mind!"

A door chime rang through the store, and the argument ceased. Creeping like mice to the front, they took cover behind shelving.

Roman Torchwick was standing at the counter, his borrowed men spreading out. He was smirking.

"Here goes." Ruby whispered, and they spread out.

Torchwick's hired thugs did quick work of the dust supply, and within seconds they were ready to leave. It was never good linger at a robbery, bad form.

His plans were scuttled when the distinctive sound of gunshots broke out, and Torchwick saw his men flying out of the store and landing in broken messes.

He sighed, "Just can't find good help these days." Twirling Melodic Cudgel, he turned to look at the four girls who took out his men. A blondie with golden gauntlets, a girl with a scythe nearly as long as he was tall, a cat with two swords and a mean look, and Weiss Schnee. Trainee huntresses, fantastic.

"Isn't it a school night ladies?"

Any other remarks was cut by the shortest, a girl clothed in red with a giant scythe, appeared in front of him in a burst of rose petals, forcing him to duck and blast himself out of her range.

 _Great, trainee huntresses that know what they're doing._

Weiss quickly put up an ice wall to slow Torchwick down, and Yang jumped and charged him.

She attacked, showering the surrounding buildings and ground with small craters. Torchwick was dodging everything she threw.

Weiss and Ruby went for his sides; Blake took his back. Boxed in like he was, Yang landed a jab on his face, sending him a few feet down the street. He rubbed his jaw.

"Feisty! I like it!"

"Shut up! Bee's Schnees!" Ruby yelled out.

Yang grabbed Gambol Shroud, while Weiss made a sheet of ice headed straight towards Torchwick. Blake threw Yang down the sheet, and Weiss sped her up further with glyphs.

Torchwick managed to brace himself, but Yang's blow hit like a freight train. If the blood from his mouth was any indication, his aura was pretty much gone. Yang pulled her arm back.

A rocket propelled cane rammed into her stomach, followed by said cane crashing down on her jaw.

"Not bad Blondie. Not good enough!" His attempt to follow up was interrupted by a red scythe, followed by a glyph powered ascent to the roof tops.

"Yang! You OK?" Ruby asked.

"I'M GOING TO TEAR HIM IN TWO!" Yang's hair was alight with flames, her eyes crimson red. The street seemed to almost be melting.

"Yeah, she's fine. After him!"

* * *

Torchwick had to admit, these kids were a hell of a lot stronger than they looked. It wouldn't matter now, since Cinder was on her way. Huntresses or not they couldn't hit what wasn't here.

He heard four sets of feet hit the ground. Scowling, he turned around.

"You just don't know when to quit, do you?"

Blondie charged him, her hair lit up like the sun. She threw another punch at him, but he managed to deflect it with his cane.

This left him open to a shot from Schnee, who hit him with a blast of fire. The black one popped up on his left, but when he fired the round passed straight through. The girl puffed off, like she was smoke.

 _Now would be a good time to show up Cinder!_

Red started spinning her scythe like a propeller, forcing Torchwick to focus on blocking. Despite his own speed, it was taking nearly everything he had just to keep up.

Cat lady tossed her weapon at his feet, encircling them in a ribbon.

He managed to jump up before she could tighten it, but he catches a hit from Blondie.

Landing a few feet away, he dusted off his coat.

 _Red's fast, Blondie hits hard, cat's got Neo's power, and Schnee's got dust. Perfect._

He shot up a slow round and hit it with the handle, spewing out a wave of fire. Schnee tries to block it with an ice wall- _when did she learn to do that?-_ but it powers straight through into-

A purple, extremely ornate barrier rose up to stop his blast cold. Behind it was the very angry face of Glynda Goodwitch.

Torchwick knew he had no chance against a huntress like her. Luckily, it looked like he didn't need to last much longer; his ride was here.

He spat out a glob of blood and spit.

"Thanks for the fun, but I've had my fill for the night!"

A gunship rose up behind him, and he turned and jumped aboard.

"We've got a huntress!"

* * *

Ruby had never before been so happy to see Glynda before. After the first few minutes of fighting, she had begun to wonder if she would ever show up. Now she was here, and now Cinder was here.

Time for the top secret plan!

"Blake! Yang!" They both turned to her.

"Bumblebee! But vertical!"

Catching on, Blake threw Gambol Shroud behind her, stretching the ribbon to the edge of the roof.

Yang grabbed it and jumped, firing shots to build up momentum. She was nearly to the ship when a huge wall of fire threw her back down to the roof.

Cinder stood in the shadows, hands steal wreathed in flames.

For a minute, Ruby felt something deep within her heart. A whisper of _something_. Almost as fast as it came, it fled.

"Ice flower!"

Weiss created the glyph, and Ruby opened fire. If Cinder was going to block her shots again, fine. She'd just aim for the turbines.

Cinder shot out blasts of fire, deflecting Ruby's assault. She flung the shards at them, but was stopped by Glynda, who again turned them into a giant spear.

By this point, all of team RWBY was hitting the ship with everything they had. Yang had gotten back up and was firing blasts of fire the size of cars, Weiss was blasting with nearly every type of dust she had, and Blake and Ruby were firing constantly. Cinder could block all of their attacks, but there was no way she could block theirs and Glynda's.

The ship turned around, its cargo doors closing. It's gun spun up and laid down a torrent of fire, forcing Glynda to shield them. Within seconds, the ship was gone.

Leaving team RWBY alone with a still very annoyed Glynda.

* * *

"I hope you understand the consequences of your actions here." Glynda walked around the team, seated at a table.

"We didn't do anything wrong! They tried to rob the guy and we just stepped in!" Yang tried to defend them, but Glynda slapped the table with her riding crop.

"I understand that, and normally that would be worth of praise; but not when it's accompanied by several thousand lien worth of property damage!"

"It's not our fault!"

"The craters kind of were, and the broken window, and the melted pavement…"

" _Shut up Ruby._ "

"Now Glynda, I'm sure that they didn't intend for the damage." Professor Ozpin stepped out of the shadows, this time he was carrying a tray of drinks rather than cookies.

"Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao Long, Blake Belladonna, and Weiss Schnee." He placed the drinks down. "Three of you are going to Beacon tomorrow, aren't you?"

"Yes, sir, we are," said Weiss.

"Ah, well, that would justify the reaction, don't you agree Glynda?"

She huffed and walked away.

"Now then, what I'm curious about was where you learned to fight like this." He pulled out a scroll displaying a video of their fight with Torchwick.

"Now, I understand that you have all been training to join Beacon and become huntresses, but this is a bit beyond what most first years are capable of. Interesting names, by the way."

"They were Yang's idea."

 _"Blake!"_

"Indeed. Well, care to explain when four trainee huntresses got skilled enough to battle with an experienced criminal?"

It was Ruby who answered, "Well, it's…well…we train a lot, and…my uncle Qrow helped?"

"Qrow, one of the world's greatest scythe wielders? He's your uncle?"

"Yes, you know him?" _He was at Beacon after all._

"Of him, yes."

He put away the scroll.

"Miss Rose, your friends are already on their way to my school tomorrow morning. Judging from what I saw in that video, you are more than capable of joining them. Would you care to?"

To Ozpin's surprise, Ruby Rose didn't look surprised at his offer.

"More than anything."

He chuckled, "Well then Miss Rose," he stood up and shook her hand, "Welcome to Beacon."

* * *

Later, after contacting Taiyang and informing him of what had transpired, Ozpin met with Glynda outside the interrogation centre.

"I'm not sure if you understand what you did in there." Glynda turned to face him.

"Miss Rose is still a young girl, and you just accelerated her by two years."

Ozpin sipped his coffee, "You saw what she was capable of. I'm honestly considering rigging the team creation. They've fought together before."

"That doesn't justify it."

Ozpin merely turned his eye towards the city.

"Tell me Glynda, when you had first arrived at the scene, did you honestly think that it was the work of four trainees?"

She glared at him, causing Ozpin to shift his eyebrows, "I thought not. She could possibly be a hazard to the health of her peers if she was kept at her age level."

"That's not the only reason, is it?" It was a statement, not a question.

"No, not entirely."

* * *

Halfway across the city, Torchwick had managed to land the Bullhead in one of the Fang's warehouses. It hadn't been his first choice, but the fight had managed to cut one of the fuel lines.

Before he could even fully exit the cockpit, he was thrown against a wall and lifted by his neck by Cinder.

"What was that, Torchwick?" Her eyes were spewing fire; her hands uncomfortably hot.

"How was I supposed to know an entire team of trainee's would be there? I'm good, but they outnumbered me four to one!"

She shook for a minute, before dropping him on the floor.

"There better not be a next time."

He rubbed his throat, "Don't worry, there won't be." He'd never seen her emotional before, and here she seemed angry.

That kid had gotten close enough that she might have seen her face. Good to know he still had some leverage.

He pulled out his scroll and called for Neo to pick him up.

 _Last time I go somewhere without some real backup._

* * *

Cinder sat on the roof of the warehouse, glaring into the night.

What should had been a simple robbery went to hell because of four teenagers. She recognised the Schnee, but the rest were alien to her.

It wouldn't have concerned her; it would be easy to find records detailing who was friends with her, if it wasn't for how the blond one had looked at her.

She looked at her, and she recognized her. How? The entire thing felt off. Glynda she could see, but four huntresses just happened to be at a dust shop at the exact time Roman was robbing it? No, something didn't fit.

But for the life of her, she couldn't figure out how. Maybe it was just a coincidence. But she'd spent too much time on the plan to trust that.

The only option was to find out who they were and what kind of threat they possess.

Then, well, she'd figure it out then. After all, they could be of use to her.


	5. Shifting gears

The next morning, Taiyang had gotten up early, and was using the time to view the video of the fight released online. He saw his daughters and their friends battling Torchwick, saw how well they fought. It honestly scared him. A few weeks ago they weren't at this level, so what had changed between now and then? He knew Qrow had been training them, some more than others, but even he couldn't have turned them into four huntresses capable of going toe to toe with Torchwick.

He looked at Ruby, saw the gleam in her eyes. She was incredible, leading her friends, staying on top of the situation. He knew why she was doing so well…

 _"Summer!" He called, racing down the forest trail with leaves crunching beneath his feet._

 _He had seen the Grimm charge her, sending her deep into the forest. But like an idiot, he focused on himself first, assuming that she'd be back in a few minutes._

 _Now she was gone, and he had no idea where she was._

 _A brilliant flash of white broke through the trees to his left. He turned, immediately running towards it. Branches cut red lines across his face, but he didn't slow._

 _There was a clearing. Soft moonlight reached through the forest, framing Summer with an ethereal glow. She was kneeling, decaying Grimm all around her._

 _Taiyang crept closer, peering into every dark crevice._

 _"Stay back!" She leapt up, her voice breaking. She was shaking, her steps wobbly and tentative. For some reason, her eyes were closed._

 _"Summer, it's me, Taiyang! I'm not going to hurt you!" He reached out a hand._

 _ **CRASH!**_

 _A Death Stalker smashed through the tree line, darting for the two teenagers. Taiyang armed his weapon, but he knew how much of a chance he had. He braced himself for impact._

 _An impact that never came. His vision was blinded by white light, leaving stars in his eyes even after it faded. He looked at the Stalker, and saw only dust remaining. He turned around to Summer._

 _She was standing tall, eyes now open. Her eyes glowed like a spotlight, hurting his own. When he had thought the moonlight was making her glow, he was wrong. She was glowing, literally._

 _"Summer…?" He whispered._

 _She looked at him, dread clearly visible on her face._

 _"It's still me! Right, please believe me I don't know what that is!" She cried, terrified beyond belief._

 _He brought her close, his voice lower than a whisper._

 _"It's ok."_

Ozpin had later told her, and by extension her team, how. It was magic, real magic. How it enhanced her skills, made her stronger. She was the silver-eyed warrior, destined to be the Grimm's mortal enemy.

When Ruby had been born with the same eyes, they both knew what it meant. Sure enough, almost as soon as she could walk, she was experimenting with weapons, asking stories about their adventures. Even Yang took longer than that to be interested. When she showed up one morning with a giant scythe she had somehow made herself, well, it was time to enroll her in Signal. Hopefully before she blew up the house.

Still, something was off. Ruby's sudden increase of skill at least had a plausible explanation, but the others were just as skilled. Yang's shot's didn't normally blow holes in asphalt, Weiss struggled to make glyphs beyond her basic version, and Blake… was probably doing better than she should, but her style wasn't flashy enough to tell from a video.

There was a brief shot of Ruby nearly parallel to her scythe, and Taiyang nearly dropped the scroll. It wasn't anything special, just her twirling it around before shooting through Weiss's glyphs, but she was taller. Maybe not by much, but she was a few inches taller than she had been before yesterday. Looking closer, he saw that nearly all of the girls were taller or fitter than before.

Something about this didn't fit.

Collapsing the scroll into its smaller form, he dialed Qrow's number. This was more than just some fluke accident or sudden increase in skill. There was something going on here.

The call went to voicemail.

"Hey Qrow, it's Tai. Look, I know you're busy, but something just happened with Ruby, and I think it's related to her eye thing." He pauses.

"Just meet me at the place."

The call ended, and Taiyang started writing a note for the girls.

He would be sad to miss them leaving, but this way he could make sure he didn't embarrass Ruby again.

She'd thank him for that, at least.

* * *

Weiss had lived most of her teenage years under the constant threat of some terrorist breaking into her home and trying to hurt her or her family. It was one of the reasons she had protested against the bunk beds so much.

So when she awoke in a strange house, it was very understandable that she nearly skewered the person who had awoken her.

Thankfully, said person was Ruby, so she managed to dodge her inadvertent strike.

"Good morning Weiss!" She was still somehow smiling.

"…Good morning."

Still smiling, Ruby pulled her up. "So, my dad had some kind of mission, so I had an idea! We can get a head start on stopping Cinder; I still remember where the train was, so we can head there first."

She sighed, "Fine. Just give me a minute to prepare myself." Her stomach growled, "And get something to eat." She looked at Ruby, expecting to see her holding back giggles.

She just smiled.

"Ok! I'll go get the others up then! See you in ten!"

She ran out, sending a swarm of rose petals into the air. Weiss fell back onto her… cot?

"It's Blake all over again."

Speaking of the cat faunus, she was well awake long before Ruby smashed through her doorway. She was sitting on the bed, reading. Probably for the best, considering last time she had woke them up she used a whistle.

"So Blake, guess what we're doing today?" She smiled, but her face was otherwise blank.

"…Going to Beacon?"

She shook her head, "And were going to go and stop Cinder today! You see, I remembered where the train was, so we can just take a transport, go over there, and take it down!" It sounded like a typical Ruby plan, but it was missing the usual gestures or gushing. She just…smiled the whole time.

"All right, I'll just go get ready to go then."

"See you downstairs!" She left the room. Blake put her book away.

 _She's pulling a me._

Ruby slowly opened Yang's door, peering in through the crack.

"Yang, it's time to get up!" She began to yell, before a shot from Ember Celica crashed into the door.

"Okay! I'll just see you in a few minutes then!"

She ran before Yang decided to aim.

In perhaps one of the strangest flights they had, the two pilots onboard Weiss Schnee's airship were ordered to bring their charge and her friends to Mountain Glenn. Although they had protested, it was a very dangerous location, they weren't stupid enough to say no the Miss Schnee for too long. She spent way too much time practicing with that sword of hers.

So that's how RWBY found themselves approaching the entrance to Torchwick's staging area. They took cover behind some rocks before they entered the area where the train would be.

"Here we go," Ruby whispered. "Three, two…"

They leapt out. Ruby unfolded Crescent Rose into its scythe form, planting it into the ground. Weiss had Myrtenaster out, prepared to launch a hurricane of dust. Blake wielded both parts of Gambol Shroud, the gun portion ready to fire. Yang hit the ground with a thud, her arms up.

A stalactite fell from the ceiling.

The tracks were devoid of a train. There was nothing moving in the city aside from Grimm, and it was very clear that there hadn't been any human habitation here in a long time.

Ruby spent the next twenty minutes cutting up Grimm.

* * *

The ride to Beacon was a solemn affair. Ruby disappeared the moment they boarded, and didn't resurface until they arrived at Beacon. Say what you will about her, but it's hard to catch someone long enough to talk to them when they're faster than some cars.

So that's how Ruby found herself sitting on a bench near the edge of the forest, staring out into the woods. She knew she should probably head towards the school, start getting ready for the initiation the next day, but she didn't want to face Pyrrha or anyone else. She failed. She didn't stop Torchwick again, even though she knew that he was going to be there.

A twig snapped behind her. She jumped up, Crescent Rose deployed. But it was Jaune, not some horrible monster. He had pulled out his shield, ready to block her attack.

She fell back down, her face the same colour as her cloak.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to scare you!" She squeaked.

"No no no no, you didn't! I was just, you know, reacting!" He put his hand behind his head, accidentally cutting off some of his hair.

He sighed, "Let's just start over. I'm Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls off the tongue. Ladies love it."

 _Can't believe I forgot about this. What did I say last time?_

Perhaps a few seconds longer than socially appropriate, she managed to speak, "Really? Do they now?"

He quietly laughed, "Well, I hope they will. My mom says they will, but parents aren't the best judges."

She giggled; she had forgotten how funny he was now.

"Wait!" He looked at her, his eyes wide. "You're that girl from the news! The one who took on that Torchwick guy!"

She deflated; of course that's what he would bring up.

"How did you hear about that?"

"It was on the news! It was amazing! I've never seen anyone fight like that before!"

She stopped, her voice turning bitter, "Then you haven't seen many fights before. We sucked; he got away and now..." _People are going to die._

"So?" He asked, twisting around to face her.

"So now he can just keep going, keep hurting people. I should've stopped him!" She was yelling by now, her hands clenched into fists. A few bystanders stopped to stare.

"Hey, you've got all year to worry about stuff like that. I'll be lucky if I make through first day…"

She heard his words, but it took her a minute to respond. He was right, of course. She still had plenty of time to save everyone. She started to smile, for real this time.

"Thank you Jaune."

He chuckled, "Don't mention it." He looked around, "I don't suppose you know where we're supposed to go, do you?"

She shook her head at him, "Come on!" She dragged him to the auditorium, him screaming the entire way.

When Ruby had reappeared in the auditorium dragging Jaune, Weiss immediately alerted Yang. She had been nearly frantic worrying about the red-clad huntress, despite the rest of her teams reassurances. They both knew that Ruby just needed some time. They had a setback, but she had clearly bounced back.

Sure enough, when Yang met up with Ruby, the younger sister had enveloped the older in a spine breaking hug.

Shortly after, Ozpin began to speak, welcoming them to Beacon in his bizarrely hostile way.

Their second chance was well underway.

* * *

Taiyang's feet squelched as he walked through the muddy soil. Bird calls filled the morning air, providing a constant reminder of who he was meeting. The noon sun speared through the branches of the tree line, crafting bizarre shadows on the forest floor. The warm wind caressed his face.

He arrived at the destination, Summer Roses tombstone. Slowly, he walked over. He knelled down, brushed his lips against his pointer and index, and laid them on her symbol.

He heard footsteps behind him. Faster than the unaided eye could see, he slid on his two gloves before charging. A slurry of dirt and grass was sent flying into the air.

He threw a left jab.

A sword blocked his fist, pain jolting through his arm.

The sword twisted, nearly skewering him.

He jumped over it, landing a kick to the face of his opponent.

He twisted around mid-jump, catching a sword to the back for his trouble.

He flew straight into a tree, before flipping back on to his feet.

The sword wielder crashed into him and the two traded blows faster than Ruby could hope to follow. The crashes and thumps of sword against weighted glove echoed through the forest, sending any sane creature far away.

The sword-wielder slightly overextended his reach, allowing Taiyang to smash his elbow into the ground. Rock and dust erupted from the impact, cloaking both huntsmen in a cloud of filth.

He crouched, prepared for another blow.

A gust of wind blew away the dust and debris, leaving Taiyang sputtering. Standing to his left was Qrow, looking no worse for wear.

"When we snuck into Glinda's dorm room, what did we steal?" He snarled; his sword aimed at him, its blade bent downwards. The sleek black barrels bore straight towards his face.

Taiyang lowered his hands, "Test answers for Port's Grimm anatomy test."

Qrow stared at him for a minute, before chuckling and sheathing his sword.

"You're getting old."

Taiyang crossed his arms, "Say's the guy turning grey."

Qrow glared at him, hand going to his hair.

Taiyang laughed, "You ever going to tell me why you always do this when we meet?"

Qrow started to smile, "Maybe sooner than you think. What was it you needed to talk about?"

Taiyang grew serious, and he pulled out his scroll.

"You've seen the footage from last night?"

A shadow fell on Qrow's face, "Yeah. I have."

"It might not be anything, but look at right here, when she twirls around Crescent Rose? She looks taller, doesn't she?"

Qrow peered into the screen.

"Or it could be the cameras. I just worried about it because of everything else that happened. It's adding up to something off. I thought maybe you'd know?" Taiyang blathered. Honestly he wasn't quite sure why he panicked so much about it.

"No, I think you're on to something. But we have other problems."

Qrow tossed the scroll back.

"That women near the end, the one throwing all the fire? I think I've fought her before."

"Since she's still alive, she either beat you or ran. Which one? Please say the second."

Qrow stared at him, all mirth gone.

"She ran, but she could beat me. Easily. She…" He raised a hand to his face.

"Screw it. You ever heard of the four maidens?"

Taiyang groaned, "You're kidding me, that's real? What's next, dragons?"

Qrow's wince was not encouraging.

They started walking back towards Patch.

"So what's the plan? The kids are obviously in danger, and I'm guessing that this goes way beyond them." Taiyang asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

"Simple. We talk to the man in charge."

* * *

Ozpin stood in his office, overlooking the incoming students. Hundreds of children, newcomers and otherwise, all of them intending to join the world's most dangerous profession.

One group in particular caught his attention. This group had already proven themselves in battle the previous day, but now he saw that they were missing a member. Ruby Rose had run off.

He wasn't worried yet. It was just as likely the crowds that caused her to flee, as it was doubts. Or perhaps she was simply dealing with her failure to apprehend Torchwick. Regardless, he was certain she could handle it.

The sound of his elevator's doors being stripped off their hinges quickly signalled who had joined him. He turned, drinking a large amount of his coffee as he did so.

"Qrow," he paused, startled to see the blond-haired man behind his operative, "And Taiyang."

"I take it you're here about what transpired last night?"

Qrow strutted up to his desk.

"Partly. But we both know it's more than that."

He raised his eyebrows, "Really? You believe it's time?"

Qrow smirked, his eyes glinting the morning sun, "It's already been decided."

Taiyang leaned over Qrow's shoulder, "Would you mind telling me what you're talking about?"

Ozpin ignored him, "Very well, your new mission starts tomorrow." He sat down, rubbing his forehead.

"Are you absolutely sure?"

Qrow's smirk disappeared, his shoulders sagging.

"I am."

"Taiyang." Ozpin opened his scroll, searching through dozens of files.

"Have you ever heard of-"

"The maidens? Yeah, they're real. Qrow kinda told me."

Ozpin glared at Qrow, a glare that reduced most mortal men to ashes.

Qrow merely shrugged and drank from his flask.

"Well then," Ozpin set his scroll on the table, and a brilliant hologram of all of Vale spread out across the room.

"Welcome to our little group."

Taiyang gaped at the image, eyes wider than dinner plates. Before long however, he turned to look at Ozpin.

"So, what does this have to do with Ruby?"


	6. A Second Chance

Ruby awoke on the ballroom's floor, squished between Yang and the wall. The floor felt cold to her feet as she got up, and she nearly tripped over the many students sprawled across the ground. To her right she could see Blake, her face tucked in a thick novel. The rising sun lit up her cat ears, making them shine like Crescent Rose after cleaning day.

A soft sigh drew her attention to her feet, where the sleeping form of Pyrrha Nikos lay. She was peacefully dreaming away, her hands forming a temporary pillow. Her armor was missing, replaced by a simple set of red and gold pajamas. Her circlet was still fixed around her head however, as if it was glued to her.

Teardrops hit the floor, narrowly missing Pyrrha's hair. Her knee's shaking; it took everything Ruby had just to make it to the hallway. Once there she collapsed, the wall being the only thing holding her up. Her nose felt like she had a cold.

The only time she had ever seen Pyrrha without her circlet, had been then. The tower, Cinder, the dragon, that whole _stupid_ night. She kept on seeing her final moments, looking at her, Cinder attacking, everything. If she thought too long she started to remember Penny, Yang and Mercury, Yang's arm…

She pressed herself into a ball, the wall digging into her back.

 _It's not real anymore. Not real. It's over, I can, I will stop it._

She breathed in, coughing at the frigid early morning air.

 _Bathroom._

She got up, still using the wall for balance. After a few minutes she was there, and her feet finally remained steady. She entered and turned on the tap, splashing her face with icy water.

She looked at her face, her gleaming eyes starting back at her. The intensity of her gaze startled her, and she found herself struggling to keep her eyes from sliding elsewhere.

She thought back, ignoring the guilt and pain, to Cinder's attack. What had happened on top of that tower? All she remembered was everything going white, a horrible headache, and Cinder attacking her.

Then she woke up at home, completely unharmed, in the past. Her team had followed her, in similar condition. Weiss didn't mention it, but she was missing her scar, and Yang obviously still had her arm.

She backed away from the mirror. She hadn't had a chance to really look at herself yet, had she? She knew of a few scars she had, collected over her fifteen years of training. Did she still have them?

Only one way to find out.

She rolled up the hem of her shirt, studying her stomach and back. When she was eight she hit a tree too fast and with too little aura, causing a branch to cut a gouge just to the right of her belly button.

She saw nothing. She examined her arms, her legs, everything. Nothing. Her skin was unmarred, clean of every cut, scrape and bruise she had ever had.

Shaking, she looked up at the mirror, at her eyes.

Missing some scars made sense; she never got a chance to make them here. But all of them?

She thought back to this morning, and yesterday. She hadn't looked, but did they have any scars? Anything of the world they left behind beyond memories?

She shook her head, spraying water drops on the bathroom tiles. _Now's not the time to panic._

She closed her eyes, and collected herself. The intercom screeched on.

"Would all first year students please report to Beacon Cliff for Initiation?"

"What? No it can't be that late!" She yelled, staring at the speaker. She wasn't even out of her pajamas yet!

With a flurry of rose petals, and more than a few bodies knocked over, Ruby rushed out to get dressed. She never noticed the cracks she left in the floor as she ran.

* * *

As Ruby investigated/panicked in the girl's washroom, another crimson clad female strapped on her armor and prepared her weapon. Pyrrha couldn't stop imagining what the initiation would be. Perhaps they would fight the teachers, test their skills. Or maybe it would be more objective oriented, defending a town or acquiring an object. Either way, it promised a true challenge of her skills, something sorely missing in the past few months.

"That's ridiculous, there's no way I put my gear in locker 636 yesterday! I would have remembered having to count that high!" Someone said behind her. Turning around, she saw a scraggly blond man stalking through the lockers, apparently searching for his locker.

"Excuse me," He turned around, "I think I know where your locker is."

His face broke out into a silly grin, "Really? Oh thank you thank you thank you! I've been looking for it all morning and…" he stopped, a blush sneaking on to his cheeks.

"I mean… Thanks sweet cheeks…ugh, never mind. Thanks. Really." He sighed, and then put out his hand.

"Jaune Arc."

She grasped his hand, perhaps a little too vigorously judging from his wince. His skin was smooth, a rarity among huntsmen.

"Pyrrha Nikos." She waited for the gasps, the sudden realization of who she was.

"Cool name, so… where are you from?" His face was curious, no sign of recognition.

She grinned, "Mistral." She let go of his hand, "Your lockers over there, if you want to get your weapon."

He slapped his forehead, "Right! Thanks!" He ran over and tried to open his lock.

"4985 or 4958?" He mumbled, punching in both. A few minutes, and another dozen variations later, the locker slid open. She walked over, trying to peek at his weapon.

It was a sword, similar in size to her own. But that was where the resemblance ended. The swords blade was chipped across the edge, and cracks were clearly visible down its length. When he pulled out the sheath, it turned into a much newer looking shield. The emblem on the front looked vaguely familiar, although she couldn't place it.

He saw her looking and quickly put the weapons away.

"They suck, I know. Stupid hand me downs." He said, shame clouding his features.

She grabbed his shoulder, "It's a fine weapon. From your family, I take it?"

He smiled, but it did not reach his eyes, "Yeah. My grandfather used it to fight in the war."

"Well, there you go. Its battle tested. No better weapon for a huntsman."

The intercom screeched, and Pyrrha felt the speakers struggle. (No wonder, considering how much metal must be in there.)

"Would all first year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation?"

"Guess that's our cue." Jaune sheathed his weapon and started walking.

"Yeah." She stared at his back, and sighed, "Back into the spotlight."

* * *

Blake woke up shortly after Ruby did. Although Ruby did admirably well at keeping quiet, Blake had always been a natural at picking out noises. Comes with being a cat faunus, she supposed.

She was surprised at how... easily she seemed to be adjusting to the lack of the bow. After her first panic attack in Patch, she felt fine.

Gently, she got to her feet.

She hadn't actually had to face the discrimination yet, or the judging. She knew now that her friends — the few that didn't know about the future — could be trusted, but everyone else?

The mess of bodies around her began to stir, including a blond haired brawler. Yang stretched out her arms, a huge yawn tumbling out of her. She turned and looked at Blake through lidded eyes.

"Hey Blake…" She croaked, "Could you grab me that water?" She pointed over to a nearby table, where a bottle sat. Blake walked over and grabbed it, while pulling Yang to her feet. She handed her the bottle, realising that Yang was suddenly staring at her. She was close enough to feel her breath on her cheeks. Yang was very, very warm, wasn't she?

"Yang…? You okay?" She whispered.

Yang shook her head and stepped back, "It's nothing. I'm just more tired than I thought."

Yang kicked Weiss, "Hey, Snowflake. It's morning."

Weiss rose from the floor, her hair resembling a rat's nest. Slowly her eyes focused on Yang.

"Oh, it's you." She blinked, "You kicked me!"

Yang shrugged, "It got you up, didn't it?"

Weiss glared at Yang until she huffed, "I can't believe you sometimes." She stood up, "If you'll excuse me, I have to go get changed." She stormed away, muttering about stupid friends and stupid sleep schedules.

"We should probably get ready too," Blake said, lifting her travel bag and rummaging through her clothes. Sudden increase in casual outfits or not, she had one option for combat. She heard Yang doing the same behind her.

The sun spilled above the horizon, turning everything around her into a golden colour. Blake quickly dressed herself in her combat outfit, rechecking every element of her weapons and equipment.

"So this is it." Yang said as she marched up behind her, "This is our… second first day? What are we calling it?"

"Our second chance."

Yang grabbed her arm, causing her to jump like a scared cat.

"Alright, second chance to not be late for this! Let's go!" she said, pulling Blake along with her.

* * *

The hallways of Beacon were packed with first year students readying themselves for their initiation. No one knew what exactly to expect, so they were preparing themselves for anything and everything.

With the exception of one Weiss Schnee, who knew exactly what was about to happen, and was perfectly prepared for it.

Perhaps it was cheating to use time travel to gain an advantage against her fellow students, but there was certainly no rule specifically against it.

Besides, it wasn't like she was packing some instant win weapon, just dust better suited to fighting the Nevermore that had surprised them previously. Speaking of which, she heard the instructions over the intercom, and started to make her way to the cliffs.

Once she got out of the building, Ruby appeared out of nowhere and attached herself to her arm.

"Weiss! AmIlatedidImissthecliffarewenotgoingtobeateam—" Weiss pushed her away, closing her mouth with her free hand.

"Ruby, stop talking. Your fine, it hasn't even started yet."

Ruby happily sighed, her frame relaxing. Weiss realized that Ruby was still glued to her, and tried to shake her off.

Suddenly she fell off, her grin disappearing, "Oh! By the way, why is your scar missing?'

Weiss touched her eye, "I didn't get it this time around, why?"

"Are you missing anymore?" She said, pulling up Weiss's sleeves, "Like one's that you shouldn't be missing?"

She slapped Ruby's hands, pushing her sleeves back down. "Stop that!" she said, before rolling them back up. ("Stop smiling like that Ruby!")

Much to her surprise, she was missing several marks she had received from her training. Her mouth opened slightly.

"What in the world?"

Ruby closed her mouth with her hand, "I think it has something to do with what happened. Maybe some super aura healing?" She started pulling on her skirt.

"Now let's go! We're going to be late!" She rushed off, ripping a patch of Weiss's clothing off with her.

Mystery forgotten, Weiss ran after her, yelling the entire time.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Ozpin's office. Taiyang was having a crash course in conspiracy theories—well, more like facts—that would stretch the belief of even the most die hard theorists. But it was all true.

Ozpin had been explaining the bare essentials, which still took a better part of a day. Eventually he had to stop him.

"Look, this is all really interesting, but I want to know what this has to do with my _daughter_ , now." He asked.

Ozpin stared at him, "I would love to explain to you why Miss Rose was so crucial, but the risk of it getting to our enemies is far too great."

Taiyang scoffed, rising from his chair. "Too great? Ozpin, Qrow's been checking every inch of this room for bugs! He had me sanitize my clothes before I even got here!"

Ozpin sighed, and drank some of his coffee before answering.

"Perhaps, but the foe we face is no ordinary man." He tapped out a code on his scroll, and the face of a vaguely familiar women appeared in the hologram. Although it was difficult to tell colours apart with the blue holograms, she appeared to be quite pale. Dark lines, heavily resembling cracks, stretched from her eyes to under her hair, which appeared to be in an odd bun.

"Who's this?"

Ozpin took a long breath, before setting down his mug.

"Her name is Salem. She is, or was, human, until an attempt to control the Grimm resulted in her… becoming one, in a way." He closed his eyes.

"Under my orders."

The room went silent, except for Qrow's continued search for bugs.

Taiyang finally managed to speak, "An attempt to control the Grimm, she's a Grimm…what happened?"

"He screwed up." Qrow said, stepping in front of Ozpin, "He wanted to 'save' us, and neither of them actually thought about what they were doing."

Taiyang looked at Ozpin, expecting to see him angry or at least trying to explain himself, but he only sighed and looked down.

"It's true. It was an attempt to prevent the Grimm attacks forever, but instead it simply gave them a leader. One who knows how our organization works, and has unimaginable power." He said.

"Then," Taiyang said, "Why even talk about it? I assume you mean she can see us?"

Qrow answered, "We don't know for sure, but being paranoid never hurt." He took a swig from his flask, "Same reason I always fight you when we meet up, or why I always make sure to see Ruby's semblance. Can't fake that."

Taiyang took a deep breath, trying to understand everything he heard.

"So where do I fit in?"

Ozpin smiled, looking like a cat who just got his mouse.

"I'm going to need someone to replace Qrow in his current role. Someone who I can trust and I know is capable. You fit the criteria."

Taiyang crossed his arms, "Why does he need a replacement?"

"He's needed to guard both Ruby and the injured maiden." He said, shutting down the light-show and throwing a binder at Qrow.

Taiyang harrumphed, "Without Ruby figuring out somethings wrong?"

"Trust me; she'll be way too distracted by other issues to question that." Qrow said.

Taiyang glared at him, "What are you planning?"

He smirked, "Let's just say Ozzie decided to improve his curriculum."


	7. Butterfly of doom

Dozens of students gathered on the cliff overlooking Emerald forest, all of them eager to begin. They had trained for this day for most of their lives, and now they had their chance to prove themselves.

Ozpin and Glynda took up their positions in front of the collected teens, and he began his speech about their teams and objectives. Ruby tuned him out; trying to figure out how, exactly, they were going to make sure they formed the same team this time.

The first of the students were launched, and Jaune had begun to ask about his landing strategy. Yang looked over at Ruby, whispering at her, "Try and aim towards me or Weiss, alright?"

She nodded, and Yang was flung off into the sky. Crouching slightly, Ruby tried to slow down her breathing.

 _Three, two…_

She heard the launch pad's gears whir, and it started to rise.

 _One._

She flew off into the morning sky, a red blur amidst the blues and whites. It felt so, so fantastic up here! She forgot just how much fun it is to fly like this, with the wind slicing through her hair, the sounds of the world silenced.

She closed her eyes, relishing in the flight, but too soon it came to an end. She hit a tree branch with her scythe, spinning around it, before dropping to the forest floor with a muted thump.

She breathed in, adoring the smell of pine trees and the sound of bird calls. The Emerald forest was easily one of her favorite parts of Beacon. Who wouldn't like a few hundred square kilometers of beautiful forest and deadly monsters?

Ruby began to prance through the forest, giddy after her morning flight. Maybe it was nerves, but it felt so good to be doing something again, even if it was just fighting off a few Grimm. The forest made for some excellent prancing grounds, full of lush trees. Spring was in full throttle, and Ruby had never been happier to see it.

She had decided something, just now. She was going to have fun with this. Oh, she was going to stop Cinder of course, but why not play around a bit? Maybe mess with team JNPR, seeing as she knew most of their deepest darkest secrets. Oh! Maybe she could—

Distant gunfire echoed out, ripping Ruby back to the present. She pulled out Crescent Rose and scanned the surroundings. Shadows danced across the forest floor, but they appeared to be from clouds, not Grimm. The gunfire stopped, leaving only the sound of forest fauna and her own breathing.

She started walking once more, her weapon ready. Maybe it was Pyrrha catching Jaune, or one of the others landing. But she could feel something out there, watching her. She spun around, but there was no one behind her.

Her hands slipped, Rose nearly falling out of her grip. The formally warm forest now felt cold and dark.

She holstered her weapon and started running. It was probably just a Grimm taking it's time, and she wasn't going to waste hers.

She never noticed the red eyes following in her wake.

* * *

Although there were many misconceptions about faunus biology, there was differences beyond the ears or tails. In Blake's case, she was lighter and more agile than a human would be at a similar physical condition.

This usually meant she could move faster and jump higher, and with more control. But when she flung by something, like the launchers at the cliff, she, well, flew. But gravity soon grasped her, and she found herself plummeting. Really, really fast.

Despite the whole 'cat' thing, she really didn't like falling. Especially not when she was nearing terminal velocity. Yang had said that she had reached similar speeds during their food fight with JNPR, but she had a crazy strong aura. Blake's… it was above average, sure, but not that good.

Luckily for her skeleton, a black glyph popped up in front of her. Acting somewhat like a reverse parachute, it slowed Blake down, allowing her to drop the trees without a scratch.

The pointy branches were thankfully cushioned by the thick layers of leaves. She wormed her way through the canopy, eventually dropping in front of a rather proud looking Weiss.

"Thanks," she said, brushing away leaves and twigs.

"Oh, don't mention it." Weiss examined her fingernails, "I only put up an extremely powerful and complicated glyph in a matter of seconds. Nothing major."

Blake rolled her eyes, "Oh, I'm sorry. I'll try again." She cleared her throat, "Oh thank you Weiss! However shall I repay you for your magnificent rescue! It was absolutely divine!"

Weiss stared at her, her mouth falling open. Then she started to laugh. She buckled over, hands on her knees. When she looked up, her eyes were wet in the corners.

"You've spent far too long with Yang," she said, wiping away her tears.

"And you've spent too much time with Ruby." Blake smirked, "Really, I don't think I've ever heard you laugh like that before."

Weiss froze, shock clear on her face. "That's… that's not true! I laugh!"

"Right. Of course, my mistake." Her ears perked up, and she pulled out Gambol Shroud, "You hear that?"

Weiss snorted, "Of course not." She trusted Blake's hearing though, and quickly prepared Myrtenaster. The bushes rustled to her left, loud enough that both could hear, and they aimed.

A few seconds passed. Weiss's sword arm began to shake, and she loosened her hold. Blake fingers twitched constantly, the alien feeling of Ruby's rings agitating them.

A large man equipped with heavy armor and a large mace burst through the shrubbery. He tripped over a root, and sent a flurry of colourful swears at it. He turned around to face Blake, his face instantly curling into a snarl.

"Oh, so they let animals join the school now?" He said, pulling up to his full, somewhat intimidating, height. He moved closer in, and Blake found it difficult to not cut him down. She held back though, cursing this world for robbing her of her bow.

"Listen, I don't care what Ozpin says; I'm not working with an EEK!" Weiss shot a fire dust round at his private parts, and he squealed like a pig being slaughtered.

"Good, because you won't be." She stepped in, her face centimetres from his. "Now, if that ever happens again, I'll cut those off myself, understand?" She growled, her sword pressed against his neck. Blake had a feeling that she wouldn't stop there.

He grunted, "Crystal." Weiss realised him, and he rubbed his throat. He pointed at her,  
"You'll regret saying that, you and your _pet_."

She turned around, flipping her head as a dismissal. Once he was gone, her gaze landed on Blake, and softened.

"Why didn't you do something? You can handle Cardin, easy. Jaune could." She asked, sheathing Myrtenaster.

Blake looked away, "It wasn't worth it."

Weiss glared at her, "Yes, it was. I saw him go for his weapon. No one would blame you for—"

"But they would!" Blake yelled, forgetting the dangers of the forest, "They would blame me. That's what people do; they blame the faunus. That's me now. I'm not a huntress in training; I'm always going to be the faunus to everyone!" Her hands were shaking, and she sheathed Gambol Shroud.

Weiss sighed, "You'll always just be Blake to us." She started walking, and Blake fell into place beside her.

Blake closed her eyes, "I know, and I'm sorry. He just…" She crossed her arms, "He reminded me of why I wore the bow. If I was wearing it, you know he'd be perfectly happy to be my partner."

"You really want _him_ to be interested in you in any way?" Weiss said as she clambered over a fallen tree.

Blake waved the thought away, "Not the point."

"If they won't accept who you are, they probably aren't worth talking too."

"Weiss, that's most of the planet."

Weiss grinned, "Exactly."

She snickered, the sound echoing through the forest. "Of course that's what you'd think."

Weiss turned to glare at her, but there was more mirth than anger in her eyes. "Are you accusing me of something?" She started to stomp, "I'll have you know that I—" Blake whipped her head to the left, silencing Weiss.

"Hear something?" She asked.

"A lot of somethings. I…" The ground shook slightly, "Did you feel that?"

Weiss grew pale, "Earthquake?"

Blake shook her head, "I can hear roars. I… I think that we should get moving, fast."

Nodding, Weiss ran towards the ruins, Blake following closely behind her. Soon, even Weiss could hear the Grimm behind them, and feel their steps.

Well, at least it will be challenging.

* * *

Ozpin and Glynda stood in slack-jawed shock at the figures their scrolls were offering. Hundreds upon thousands of Grimm were all proceeded towards the forest ruins. Everything from Beowolves to Nevermore's filled their screens, and Ozpin felt a trickle of fear.

"How is there that many Grimm?" Glynda asked as her hand flew across her scroll. She looked at Ozpin, and asked, "Should we intervene? This is far beyond what is expected."

Ozpin merely sipped his coffee. "Not yet. Let's see how they handle overwhelming enemy numbers." Glynda eyes widened into dinner plates, "But prepare some ships for extracting them if things go wrong. Inform team CFVY and the professors that their services will be required for cleanup." Glynda nodded and began to make the calls, leaving Ozpin to think.

It was normal for the initiation to attract Grimm, but this was far, far beyond the normal amount. Something was happening, something more than a simple fluke.

He went to sip his coffee, but he found it empty.

"Damn it." He mumbled.

* * *

Yang wasn't sure whether to be happy or annoyed that she didn't meet anyone yet. While it meant that she didn't form a partnership with someone outside of her team, it also meant she was bored out of her mind the whole time.

Seriously, not one person or Grimm in the entire forest?

Luckily, she landed close to the ruins, and it was only a short walk to reach them. Once she arrived she saw Ruby, who had already picked out a chess piece for them.

"Hey! You picked the pony again! Also, you missed me. By a mile." She crossed her arms, "What do you have to say for yourself?"

Ruby had the decency to look sheepish at least, "Sorry! I guess I wasn't looking where I was going and…"

Yang laughed and pulled her into a hug, "Don't worry about it, I'm just messing with you. Find anyone else?"

She nodded, "Yeah, Jaune and P-Pyrrha are just over there." She pointed towards the bushes, where the two appeared shortly afterwards. Yang noticed how she struggled with her name. It reminded her far too much of Dad after Summer died.

She patted her hair, Causing Ruby to blush and push her hand away. Ah, the easiest way to pull someone out of a funk, embarrass them.

Their sisterly bonding was interrupted by the sudden explosive arrival of Nora. Apparently the Ursa that she rode on last time was busy, as she crash-landed right in the centre of the ruins. She jaunted out of the crater she created, leaving a dizzy looking Ren.

"Nora, don't ever do that again," he said, after he managed to get stabilized.

She appeared in front of, and poked his nose. "No promises!"

The future team JNPR picked up their pieces, the castle, again. Ruby let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. JNPR was going to be the same, and so far it looked like RWBY would be as well.

She paused and looked around her. Weiss and Blake were still nowhere to be found. Were they okay?

A crash brought her attention to the tree line off to west. Blake and Weiss flew out of the forest, and Ruby grinned like a maniac.

That grin was quickly destroyed when she saw the dozens of Grimm following them. Arming herself, she saw literally thousands of Grimm began to circle them. Weiss and Blake made it to the ruins before they were boxed in, and picked up the chess piece.

"We got the piece Ruby, now can we _please_ get out of here!" Weiss yelled, throwing off a Beowolf with a glyph. The team grouped together, weapons outwards.

"How?" An Ursa charged, roaring like a banshee. Ruby spun her scythe, lodging the blade in the beast's head, before throwing it out of the way.

"I don't know, think of something!" Weiss blocked a snarling mouth, before ramming her blade through the monsters eye. Yang and Blake both slid around the two arguing warriors, doing their best to keep the horde at bay long enough to come up with a plan. It was clear that they couldn't handle this many on their own, and JNPR clearly had other issues to deal with at the moment.

The ground began to shake again, only this time with louder, deeper steps. The trees shed anything loose and even the Grimm seemed to pause in their attack.

The tree's split open to reveal a Goliath in all its glory, roaring like a kaiju at the four. Ruby nearly dropped her weapon.

"Oh, oh crap."

* * *

"Crap crap crap crap CRAP!" Jaune yelled as he swung his sword. He was pressed on all sides by the Grimm, and even his slow and predictable slices were cutting through two or three at a time. Pyrrha passed beside him, swinging her weird javelin/sword/rifle/thing around her, decapitating dozens of monsters.

Ren, the guy wearing green, and Nora, the one with the giant hammer, danced around each other, building off each other's movements. He herded them into little clusters, and then let Nora smash them to pieces.

A wolfey thing charge him, and he tried to pull up his shield. Even he could tell that it was too slow, and he watched as the snarling maw of the monster grew ever closer.

Suddenly his shield was surrounded by a black glow, and it _pulled_ itself up, crashing into the beasts jaw and sending it flying into the air. Pyrrha fired out several shots.

He scrambled to her side, blocking another Grimm.

"Was that you?" He asked, bracing his arms for the next hit.

She stabbed a piggish looking thing in the jaw, pulling it over her head and throwing it into the crowd. "Yes. My semblance is polarity. I can control metal."

He crouched beneath his shield as a bear thing landed on top of him. He pushed, but it didn't budge until Pyrrha rammed it off.

"Good to know, whatever a semblance is," He said between breaths.

The sound of tree's being smashed brought his eyes towards the other four. A massive elephant thing was attacking them, smashing the ruins around them and roaring loader than a jet engine.

"Oh no." Pyrrha said, causing Jaune to whip his head towards her. In the entire time he'd known her, she never sounded that scared. "That's a Goliath! They're… all but invincible."

He gulped, "We're screwed, in other words." But he soon discovered that they were both wrong.

Despite the massive size, the four girls attacked the giant.

Ruby sped around and over it, using the white one's glyphs to propel herself around it and hit its weak spots.

Yellow punched its legs over and over again, each hit with enough force to make the thing buckle under the onslaught.

The faunus girl danced around its head, seemingly copying herself, stabbing everything she could reach. Neither Jaune nor Pyrrha had ever seen anything like it.

But he could tell they had problems. For every blow they struck, they still had to deal with the horde beneath them.

White constantly had to interrupt her casting to deal with a bear or wolf, forcing Ruby to the ground each time.

Yellow struggled to keep up the assault amidst the waves of enemies.

Faunus girl was the best off, but she couldn't keep herself in the air forever, and when she landed she'd be torn apart.

"We need to thin them out!" Jaune yelled, ramming his sword through a monsters head. The flesh squelched as he pulled out the rapidly dulling blade.

Pyrrha jumped over him, ramming her shield down on a bears head, and she said, "How?"

Jaune didn't answer, looking around for some kind of advantage. He couldn't see anything aside from the four girls and Ren firing a burst of—

His eyes lit up, and he asked Pyrrha, "Can you control bullets?"

She looked over, startled. "Probably. Why?"

He grinned, and got bowled over by a pig. Pyrrha launched her weapon, skewering the beast to the ground. He got back up, both his weapons gone.

"Ren!" he screamed, "Put some bullets in the air!"

Ren looked at him, confused, but did as he said. Thousands of bullets flew into the sky. Pyrrha, catching on, grasped them with her semblance. Using her power and the force of gravity, she pulled all of them towards a Grimm.

They hit the monsters with a boom, the thousands of bullets creating a force equal to that of a bomb. Grimm dropped like leaves in the fall, their dying screams forcing him to cover his ears.

Thousands of corpses laid around the battle field, the only thing left standing was the Goliath. Jaune tried to rise to assist, but his legs gave out. Pyrrha, drenched in sweat, soon followed him. Ren was collapsed against Nora, who was only keeping herself standing thanks to her hammer.

Out of the corner of his eye Jaune saw Ruby dodging the Goliath's trunk. It was up to them now to stop this.

He hit the ground with a thud.

* * *

Ruby saw Jaune's plan, and she was honestly impressed. Both at the plan, and Pyrrha pulling it off. Dodging the monsters feet, Ruby refocused on the massive Grimm.

It was bleeding heavily thanks to the combined effort of team RWBY, but it was still standing tall. If they were going to defeat the thing, they were going to need a plan.

Ruby was suddenly pulled away by Blake, both of them stopping where an exhausted Weiss and Yang waited.

"This isn't working Ruby! The things got skin like a freaking tank!" Yang gasped, Blake holding her up. "We need a better plan!"

"I've got one. Blake, can you set up a slingshot between the bridge and the ruins?" She asked, while Weiss slowed down the Goliath with ice.

Blake quickly measured the distance, "Sure, if you don't mind it being tight."

Ruby grinned, "Yeah, that'll work. Pollination!"

Weiss turned to her, "What?"

She rolled her eyes, "The nevermore thing!"

Nodding, Weiss fell back from her assault.

Blake threw the sword half of Gambol Shroud towards Yang, who quickly stabbed it into the pillar.

Ruby jumped onto the string, pushing it back a few feet. Weiss set up a glyph, powerful enough that Ruby could feel the energy about to be unleashed.

Yang leapt behind her, Ember Celica cocked and ready to fire, she nervously looked at Ruby.

"Are you absolutely sure about this?" She asked.

"Yeah! What could go wrong?"

"…I'm about to shoot you out of a slingshot. What couldn't go wrong?"

"Yang… just do it."

She felt the blow of Yang's punch, and it combined with the forces of Weiss and Blake to send her flying at the Goliath.

She pushed herself faster with Crescent Rose, before unfolding its blade and ramming it into the hide of the Goliath.

Without slowing down she continued running, the blade carving a wide line down the monsters back.

When she started to run out of monster she jumped off, and landed with her team, leaving a small crater.

The Grimm swayed on its feet, struggling to stay standing, but eventually the monster fell. A tidal wave of leaves and dust buffered the quartet, bringing a much needed blast of cold air.

Yang sat down with a thump, groaning, "That's it then? It's over? Please, please say yes."

Weiss, panting from firing Ruby, said, "It does appear that way." She smiled, her face covered in sweat, at Ruby.

Then a jagged tusk came in from the dust cloud and stabbed her in the stomach, instantly creating a pool of blood on the ground. Weiss screamed out, her face rapidly losing color. Ruby could taste her blood.

The Goliath heaved its head upwards, cheering its victory. Yang struggled to her feet, Blake joining her, but they were too slow. She was too slow.

"WEISS!" She screamed, and leapt upwards. The air seemed to fold around her, and everything slowed. She could see the drops of Weiss's blood falling down, her tears, the monsters fur blowing in the wind.

The Goliath realised the danger it was in and ran. Ruby hit a tree and bounced off it, reducing the tree to splinters. She leapt, once, twice. She could see Weiss, thankfully still alive. The tusks were farther to the right than she thought, so she was only struggling with blood loss.

She unfolded Crescent Rose to its second form. She felt an unbearable pressure within her head. The beast turned to her, stared her straight in the eye. Somehow she knew, deep within her, that it was scared.

She sliced down with the blade, feeling bone and muscle give way as if made of water. The steel rang out from the stress, and the Goliaths dying screams accompanied it.

She landed, the monster quickly disintegrating around her. With the adrenaline wearing off, she felt her muscles break down after pushing them far too hard.

She pulled herself up and ran towards Weiss. Her beautiful snowy skirt stained by the huge volume of blood pumping out of her torso.

Ruby weakly grasped her hand, wiling Weiss to live. _Ozpin will be here soon._ She thought.

Seconds later, she passed out.

* * *

Although Ozpin was faster than anyone on the planet, he still struggled with distances such as the one he just ran. Once the Goliath had appeared, the initiation had effectively ended. He didn't expect students, even graduated students to be honest, to be capable of taking down a full grown Goliath.

Imagine his surprise when he arrived at the scene, and not only found the horde of Grimm dead or dying, but the four huntress he interviewed before fighting the giant, _and surviving._

Of course, before long they were nearly defeated, but what he saw… few things could surprise him by now, but this was one of them.

Ruby, screaming out her friend's name, assaulted the Grimm, but that wasn't the incredible part. She jumped, and through that alone shattered the sound barrier.

Going nearly as fast as he could, she bounced from tree to tree, reducing each one to a pile of broken branches.

Then she struck, her blade lit with white light, cutting through one of the strongest Grimm known to man with one hit. The Grimm in question vaporised shortly after words.

He shook his head.

"Unbelievable," he said as he made his way through the decaying corpses. He couldn't imagine what had killed these Grimm. Surely the girls would have been too busy to handle them.

He could see Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos, Lie Ren, and Nora Valkyrie resting near the bridge. Perhaps they were responsible? He hadn't seen any weapon capable of doing this much damage, but they were the only other people to arrive yet.

His theorizing stopped the moment he saw Weiss Schnee's stained clothing. Running at speeds few could see; he arrived at her shoulder, expecting a corpse.

Instead, he found a girl, filthy, and with her aura depleted far beyond what was healthy, but alive. He saw the entrance wound on her skirt, and peered through to examine the wound.

Or he would have, if there was a wound.

He saw Ruby's hand holding Weiss's like it was a lifeline, and Ozpin wondered if that was the case. Ruby was obviously no ordinary girl, but it appeared she was also no ordinary silver-eyed warrior.

He closed his eyes and laughed softly. Ordinary silver-eyed warrior, like there ever was such a thing.

He heard the steady roar of jet engines, and gestured for the medical teams Glynda had the foresight to bring.

It was going to be an interesting year.

* * *

Cinder sat; enraptured by the video her drones had planted within the Emerald Forest. It was incredible, truly. She had never seen anyone aside from Qrow defeat a Goliath.

Still, it was concerning. These four were obviously incredibly powerful, and even the idiot blond managed to impress her. She threw the scroll on her desk.

Still, even if she want to kill them yet, now would be too suspicious. She'd have to lure them out somehow, make her look unconnected.

She pulled out a news clipping, one containing a picture of the four. She focused on the one girls cat ears.

Perhaps it was time for Adam to earn his keep.


	8. Dealing with Change-Part 1

Ruby peered around the corner leading into the cafeteria. Dozens of students meandered around within the room, trafficking plates of delicious, sweet waffles.

But she had a mission, a mission that must be completed before she could consume any food of the waffle variety. She had to find a certain red head…

"You do realise that you can't avoid her forever, right?" Weiss states, sneaking up behind her. Ruby jumped at her voice, and then turns around, pasting on a smile.

"What do you mean?" She put her hands together and stared down. "I'm not avoiding Pyrrha—I mean anyone!"

Weiss snorts, "Sure, Mrs. "Is Pyrrha okay?" Her voice becomes squeaky, "Oh but don't tell her I asked! It'll look creepy!"

Ruby kicked her, not hard, but enough to feel it. "S-shut up!"

Weiss shook her head. "Come on, let's just go in there and eat. Blake and Yang are already in there, see?" She pointed them out. Yang waved, Blake glanced away from her book.

Ruby sighed, and then threw up her hands.

"Fine. Fine, I'm going."

She walked in, Weiss trailing behind her with a smug grin firmly affixed to her face.

Ruby closed her eyes, breathed in, and grabbed a tray. She grabbed a dozen waffles, and drowned them in syrup.

So far so good.

She reached to pick up some strawberries, but a gauntlet encased arm blocked her.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" The hand pulled away, and Ruby turned to look at the face of Pyrrha Nikos.

Ruby stared at her, unable to speak. Pyrrha shuffled her feet.

"Oh it's, it's okay!" She managed to say, quickly stepping away from Pyrrha. "I'lljustgooverherebye!" She ran off towards her table.

Once she arrived, she hit Weiss in the shoulder.

Weiss rubbed her warm where she hit her. "What was that for?" She said, glaring at Ruby.

"Don't tell me you didn't see!" She groaned and dropped her head onto the table. "Now I'll never be able to talk to her again! I'll have to change all my classes and—" A waffle suddenly smacked her in the head, the syrup sticking to her hair. She looked to Yang, who was hoisting another waffle in her hands.

"Sorry Rubes," She said, putting down the waffle, "But you were kinda panicking."

Ruby peeled off the waffle, "Of course I'm panicking! I s-still…" She said with her voice cracking. She stopped and looked over to Pyrrha, who was sitting down with her team.

"How do you talk to someone that you let die?"

The table grew silent. Yang winced, realising what she brought up.

Ruby picked up her fork and went to consume her breakfast, but discovered her plate was missing. Whipping her head around, she found Weiss digging into her pile.

"Weiss! Those are my waffles!" She yelled, and started to shake the white haired girl.

Weiss swallowed, and said, "You weren't eating them!"

Seeing the looks of shock around the table, she coughed, "A-and you're being a dunce!" She turned Ruby around to face Pyrrha.

She leaned in close, "Do you really think that she would care about it? She chose to attack Cinder, and she chose to do it alone. You tried, and that's all she would have wanted. "

Ruby started to speak, but Weiss stuffed a waffle into her mouth.

"No, don't ruin this by thinking about it. Just eat your waffle, and when you talk to her again, say hi. Got it?" Weiss said. Ruby nodded, a muffled "Yes" barely understandable through the waffle.

Ruby swallowed, and turned around.

"Okay, okay, fine." She closed her eyes, whispered something under her breath, and stood up.

"I'm going to go talk to her right now!" She yelled, and wilted under the stares of the other tables.

Yang stood up and cheered, "Go Rubes!"

Grinning, Ruby ran off to JNPR's table, but slowed down once she got close. Pyrrha and Jaune were discussing the finer points of swords—well, Pyrrha was, Jaune was more just listening—and Nora was balancing an empty plate on her nose with a fork. Ren looked with his head in his arms.

"I can do this… I can do this…" She whispered, and then shyly waved her hand.

"Hi Pyrrha."

Pyrrha, flashing a brilliant grin, waved back.

"Hello again… Ruby, correct?"

Ruby slowly nodded.

"Well then," She stood up and grasped Ruby's hand, "It's nice to meet you."

"Uh yeah, same here." She let go of Pyrrha's hand and stared upwards for a minute.

"So… how you doing after the fight a few days ago?" She asked, remembering how JNPR had finished the fight.

Pyrrha frowned slightly, "I'm fine. Mostly. Well, the doctors say I'll be able to join my team in combat in a few more days, assuming I continue to follow their instructions."

Ruby face fell, and she started to sniffle "I'm so sorry about that."

Ruby felt a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up into Pyrrha's concerned filled eyes.

"Don't be sorry, it's not your fault."

Ruby pulled off her hand, "But it is! I should've helped! I should have turned around or—"

"And leave your team to deal with a Goliath?" Pyrrha crouched down to Ruby's eye level.

"Never be sorry for trying to help your friends Ruby. Succeed or fail, as long as you try it doesn't matter."

Ruby stared at her, before she began to giggle. The giggle soon burst out into a full laugh and with tears streaming down her face, she pulled Pyrrha into a spine breaking hug.

She stayed like that for a few minutes, long enough that even someone as socially inept as her could tell was getting a little awkward. So she pulled away, and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"So, I'm sorry for running away on you like that. I was just a little… scared, I guess."

Pyrrha waved it away, "Don't worry about it." She grinned, "It's happened before. Although you're a little too young for me, I'm afraid. And I don't like girls in that way and-" She stopped, and noticed Ruby had frozen.

"Ruby? Are you alright?" She quickly waved her hand in front of Ruby's face, but got no reaction.

Jaune leaned out from behind her, "I think you broke her."

A cold cup of water and some hasty apologies later, Ruby zipped back to her own table.

"So, how did it go?" Yang asked, before Ruby shushed her.

"What? I'm just—" "SHH!"

"What—" "SHH!"

Yang groaned, "Fine. I'll stop asking."

Ruby sighed in relief, before pulling out a binder. She opened it to a schedule.

"Okay then! So, classes! We've got…" She trailed off, her eyes widening like a tunnel.

Yang leaned over. "What is it oh my God…"

Blake closed her book.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"It's him…" Ruby whispered in awe.

"Who?"

* * *

Qrow leaned heavily on the desk, partially unpacked boxes littering the ground around him. He drank heavily from a flask. Thankfully, he didn't seem too be really drunk yet. He pulled the flask away and threw it behind him, before gazing into the assembled crowd of students with an appraising eye.

"So," He said, his voice full of scorn, "This is Ozzie's latest batch." He shook his head, before pushing himself off the counter.

"My name is Qrow. It's not professor Qrow or Mr. Qrow or whatever, just Qrow." His eyes settled on Ruby, "I suspect some of you know this."

He coughed, "Since Ozpin finally got his head out of his ass, I'm now the one of two people teaching combat. Don't worry; you'll still have Glynda to ogle on Tuesdays and Thursdays. But for Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays?" He spread out his arms, "You've got me."

Ruby hit the desk with a thump, cursing out an uncle with all the swearwords an innocent fifteen year old knew.

Uncle Qrow was a great person, he really was. But it wasn't his manners that kept him employed at Signal for all those years.

"So, first thing for today then." He pulled out his sword and rammed it into the ground.

"Pop quiz!" He peered out into the audience, as if it was dark. After a minute, he grinned, and pointed towards Pyrrha. "You, tournament lady, get down here."

Pyrrha shook her head, and said "Sir, I haven't been cleared for combat yet. I was told it would delay my recovery."

"Doesn't matter," He pointed his sword at her, rotating the blade downwards and showcasing the barrels. "Grimm don't care about doctors' orders."

Sighing, Pyrrha began to make her way down the steps. Ruby's grip on her pencil tightened enough to make it snap. Didn't he understand what he was doing?

Qrow shook his head, "No! I meant," He leapt, smashing his sword into Pyrrha's back and sending her over his desk.

"Attack me!"

Pyrrha rose from behind the desk, weapons at the ready.

She charged, swinging her sword down on his hard enough to make them sing.

Before she could even blink, Qrow struck from behind, smashing the pommel of his sword into her spine.

He went to strike again, but Pyrrha barely manages to activate her semblance in time, moving the blade just above her body.

Seizing the brief advantage, she struck hard with her shield, ramming the sharp edge into his stomach. He grunted, before he quickly pushed her away.

Most of the audience had forgotten their seats, preferring to stand and not miss a thing. Ruby was nowhere to be seen.

Qrow took a step, and suddenly he was in Pyrrha's face swinging his sword. She tried to throw it off, but he simply shifted his arm and kept it straight.

She closed her eyes, and braced for impact. She started to lift her shield, but she knew she would never pull it up in time.

Suddenly, gunfire rang out. The impact Pyrrha had been dreading never came, and she tentatively opened her eyes.

Qrow's sword was nailed to the wall, kept there by a red scythe. Up this close, Pyrrha can see the small amount of nicks and dents visible in the frame.

She looks at him, and she will admit it's nice to see him look surprised. It fades quickly, replaced by a smug smile.

"Ah, I see someone's getting bored." He pulled his sword out, leaving a rather limp Ruby hanging on to it. "Redhead steeling your thunder?"

"NO! I just… she doesn't look so good right now." She tilted her head towards Pyrrha, and Qrow had to admit that she had a point. Pyrrha had tried to get up, but she could barely keep herself from collapsing on the ground.

Qrow sighed, "Fine." He then threw Ruby back into the crowd. "Now that we've had our demonstration…" He pulled Pyrrha up to her feet, seemingly unconcerned by how shaky she was.

"So," he began, pushing Pyrrha back to a waiting Jaune, "anyone want to tell me where Pyrrha went wrong?"

Various members of the class spoke up in defense of their comrade, stating that Pyrrha was still sick, of course Qrow won. How she would beat him in a heartbeat in a real match. Qrow simply smirked, and drank out of his flask.

Weiss spoke up, "She approached it like it was a tournament fight."

Qrow stopped drinking, and stared down the bottle towards the heiress.

"…Heh, so we do have some talent here." He holstered his drink and gestured for her to continue.

"Well…" She started, and all the eyes in the room turned towards her. She squirmed in her seat, and then spoke again, with more conviction.

"She was still recovering from injury, yet she attacked you like it was a normal fight. In order to survive an encounter with an enemy in her condition, she would have had to find some way of gaining an advantage."

"And what would that be?" He smirked, and Weiss started to grind her teeth. She remembered how he attacked Winter without warning. Suddenly she had an idea.

"The pipes." She said, straining to keep her voice level. "The school walls all contain pipes. If those were taken down, the water could distract you or interfered with your movements. Then she should have either attacked or retreated."

Qrow stared at her, studying her. Weiss began to wonder if she said something wrong.

Suddenly Qrow sheathed his sword, and the bell rang shortly afterwards.

"Well, I guess that's that for today." He smirked at Ruby, "Something tells me that I'll be seeing some of you later."

* * *

Thankfully for RWBY's frazzled nerves, the next class was Ports lecture. Having already heard it before, even Weiss felt comfortable ignoring it in favor of talking with her team.

Ruby opened their dialogue, "What's Uncle Qrow doing here?"

Weiss whispered back, "I thought you two would have known! He's your uncle!"

"Yeah but he's still working at Signal! Or I mean he was last time."

"What if he never was?" Blake said, causing the other four to stare in shock at her.

She shifted her gaze, "It's just a rumor I remember from… the White Fang. Some guy with a sword, really dangerous. Kept on stalking our, the Fang's messengers." She shrugged. "Maybe it was him?"

Yang shook her head, "No way. Qrow was way too busy to be working for anyone full time. Right Rubes? Rubes?" She looked over to her sister, only to see her biting her lip.

"He…did say he knew Ozpin." Ruby said slowly, like the words were molasses. "And Ozpin wanted to talk to him when he got here."

"Winter knew him too."

"And that means…?" Yang groaned loudly and leaned back. "You know what? Maybe we're overthinking this. He probably just got bored teaching kids how to hold their weapons in Signal."

"Ah! I see we have a volunteer." Port boomed out, shocking RWBY into paying attention. "Miss Xiao Long, since you clearly believe you do not need to pay attention, you may battle this ferocious creature."

Yang stared at him, before standing up. "Sure, no problem _sir._ " She said with her hands clenched. "I'll go fight your horribly dangerous giant pig."

Port's eyes narrowed, "Go retrieve your weapons."

A few minutes later, she stood in front of the class, her gauntlets armed. She had quickly switched to her normal outfit while grabbing her weapons, as the school uniforms were not very well designed for actual combat.

The class watched in anticipation. Rumors had quickly spread throughout the school about what Yang was capable of. Many of the students watching had actually seen her battling the Goliath. Such a feat was rare amongst professional huntsmen and huntresses, let alone someone who had yet to even enter Beacon.

Port lifted his weapon.

"Begin!" He yelled, and smashed the lock with the axe blades. The Boarbatusk ran out and roared like a demon. It lifted its snout into the air, sniffing out its next target. Its blood red eyes swept the crowd, searching for the delicious morsel it could feel.

"Hey! Four eyes! I'm the one you want! Come on!" Yang yelled, brandishing her gauntlets.

The monster turned, shifting focus towards the much closer target.

It stormed towards her, head down, tusks up.

Shortly before it hit it curled into a ball, revving up on the floor. It drove itself straight into Yang.

Who then proceeded to grab the thing while it was still moving, lift it over her head, and punch it in the stomach several times, spraying black blood across the roof.

Eventually she dropped the gored Boarbatusk on the ground. Wordlessly, she rejoined her team. Weiss pushed her a few inches away.

"W-well then, apparently we are in the presence of a true Huntress in-training!" Port said, wiping off his jacket. "That's all the time we have for today. Tomorrow we will begin discussing Grimm eating habits!"

The bell rang, and the classroom quickly emptied. Yang ran out before her team mates could talk.

"Is she alright?" Weiss asked, packing up her books.

"I don't know. She's never gotten mad at a teacher before…" Ruby said, slinging her backpack over her shoulder. She started to run after her, but was stopped by Blake.

"No, Ruby, she won't say anything to you." She said, glancing back at Yang's retreating form. Ruby started to protest, but Blake cut her off.

"You're her sister. She won't say anything to you because of that. I'll go, alright?" Ruby started to pout. Blake sighed, "Look, if it's important, I'll tell you. She's probably just tired." She looked at Weiss.

"Can you keep her away for a few hours?" She asked, expecting Weiss to complain.

"Sure!" Weiss sang, causing Blake to stare at her in shock. "Come on Ruby, I've got something to show-," Catching the stares she was suddenly receiving, Weiss blushed pink, and spoke again, "I mean, of course Blake, I'd be happy to." She bowed slightly, before pulling an equally red Ruby away.

Aaand now there's something going on with Weiss too, isn't there?

She moaned, covering her eyes with her hand. She just wanted a simple first day, where the only problems they had were remembering what they had learned.

She really should have known it wouldn't be that simple.

* * *

Weiss dragged Ruby into their room. They had set it up almost identical to the way it was before, bunk beds and all. (Although she had insisted that they set up Ruby's bed with something sturdier looking than the ropes. So they chose steel cables.)

Ruby plopped down on Weiss's bed, and snuggled into her pillow. Despite her plans of following her sister and Blake, she was out like a light within seconds.

She looked so peaceful, sleeping the way she was. All Weiss wanted to do was fall down beside her, curl up into a ball and sleep…

She quietly slapped herself.

 _Get a hold of yourself! You. Are. A Schnee. Schnee's do not sleep between classes._

Normally such an argument would have kept her from even looking at the bed, but she couldn't stop herself.

She had been much the same way since the initiation. Perhaps it was simply some side effect of the medication she was on, but she kept on thinking random thoughts that simply had no place in her mind.

She didn't even like cookies, and yet she found herself consuming one of Ruby's many hidden stashes—not again!

She glared at the offending object. Already half of the baked good had been consumed by her, and she could taste the chocolate chips melting in her mouth.

"Listen to me, you stupid cookie. I am better than you." She growled, standing to her full (un)impressive height.

"You think that you'll beat me?" She scoffed, "I will beat you. You'll see! Soon you'll be ruing the day you ever crossed paths with Weiss Schnee!" She started to laugh, a laugh that stays in your head and haunts your dreams for the rest of your natural life. "You're nothing! Just some stupid combination of flour, eggs and—"

"Weiss?" Ruby asked, stirred from her slumber, "What are you doing?" She rubbed her eyes.

Weiss froze up, before jabbering, "I… uh, you see, I was simply…"

Ruby squinted at the cookie. Weiss glanced at it, and then stared at Ruby, putting on a nervous smile.

"Oh, you're just talking to a cookie. Good night Weiss." She yawned and fell back down.

Weiss sighed. Then she ate the cookie.

"Forget it; I'll just make sure to pay her back…"

* * *

Finding Yang had been easy. Just follow the cracked floor. Eventually Blake found her in the outskirts of the forest, blasting trees to cinders with Ember Celica. She called out to her from a distance, sneaking up on her right now was a bad idea.

"Yang!" She yelled, only just loud enough to be heard over her friend's rampant tree abuse. Yang whipped around, eyes red, but they quickly faded back to her normal violet upon seeing who it was.

"Hi Blake." She sighed, and both her gauntlets collapsed into their bracelet forms. "How long were you standing there?"

Blake tilted her head. "Just a minute. Why?"

"It's nothing." Yang breathed in, and started speaking with a modicum of her normal cheer, "So, what did you follow me out here for?"

Blake shrugged, "I was worried about you." She walked over and set her hand on Yang's shoulder. "You just stormed out of class, and none of us knew where you went."

Yang shoved her hand off. "Yeah, well I'm fine. So you can go tell Ruby that. Or did Qrow send you?"

Blake jumped slightly, startled. "Qrow? What does he have to do with this?"

Yang snorted, "Oh don't act like you don't know." She stormed off.

"Wait! Yang! Get back here!"

Yang turned around, but kept walking the same direction. "Why? So you can drag me back to him again?" She turned around and started running.

She ran through the forest, completely ignorant of what direction she was going or where she was. Blake, thankfully, was fast enough to keep up and track where they were.

Eventually Blake simply jumped in front of the Brawler, forcing Yang to a stop. She crossed her arms and glared at her.

"What are you doing Blake?" Yang growled at her, her eyes crimson red.

"Repaying a debt. Now," She pushed Yang down on a log. "Talk to me." She stared into Yang's eye, "Please. You know you can trust me."

Yang sighed, "I guess that's just it. He doesn't it."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," Yang shifted her eyes towards the ground. "When we were in Signal, Qrow would always be calling me into his office after classes." She picked up a leaf and started twirling it around. "He always said it was some extra practise or that he just wanted to spend time with his niece. But every time I went there." She crushed the leaf.

"Every time he asked me about Ruby. Or about what I had just done to try and find mom. It was like he was questioning me, and it was every day." The gaps between her fingers began to glow with orange light.

"I know why he does it. I do, really. But it just never stopped." She looked up at Blake, opening her hand and allowing the burnt ashes of the leaf to float away in the wind.

"It hurts, not being trusted. I mean, he's my uncle, so he's family and all that. But it just, it just hurts so much…" She wiped tears out of her eyes.

Blake's mind flashed back to a certain day in their dorm room. She pulled Yang into a hug.

"I trust you Yang, okay? I always will. I'm sorry about what I said, I... I should have known you would have never hurt him." She buried her nose in Yang's hair, smelt the lavender shampoo the brawler used. Tears of her own soon joined Yang's.

They sat like that for what felt like hours, the sun slowly crawling through the sky. Eventually Yang pulled away.

"A-anyways, it just sucks having looking over my shoulder all the time again. I was looking forward to having some time without that." She smiled, "But hey, maybe I, we can convince him we're up to the task, eh partner?"

Blake's response was to pull her to her feet.

"It's probably not a good start to miss your next class."

Yang laughed, "Ah, don't worry about that kitty! We still got…" She pulled out her scroll, and her joyful expression wilted, "Five minutes." She looked up, "I guess we better run… Blake?" There was no Blake near her.

"Blake? Blake? Oh no, you didn't leave me behind! I can't run fast enough!" She pocketed her scroll and groaned.

"When I find you, I'm going to make sure you never run again!" She yelled, and the sound echoed off the trees. Then she started to run.

She never heard the quiet giggle from the bush.


	9. The night between

Weiss scratched away at a paper on top of her bed, sifting through a small pile of notes. Her partner repeatedly shifted in her sleep, snoring softly, but she was too focused to let that slow her now.

Eventually Ruby awoke, and she slowly got up, rubbing out the sand in her eyes. Her unfocused eyes eventually locked on to Weiss, hard at work.

"Uh Weiss? We don't have any homework yet… at least that I know of…" She whispered, the world still seeming far too bright. She stuck her arm into her secret cookie stash (located just under her bed) but her hand found nothing but empty air.

"The cookies are gone Ruby. And this isn't homework." She pulled Ruby over.

"I've been planning things out. If we're going to take down Cinder, we need a solid, well thought out plan." She said, propping up Ruby's drooping head with her elbow. "So I wrote down a few notes—"

"Killed a few trees…"

"—a-and I made a chart that shows Cinder's organization. See?"

"…Is that a crab?"

Weiss sighed, "No, Ruby, it's a Venn diagram."

"Oh."

"That one is for homework."

"Oh. Again."

"Dolt." Weiss muttered, but she couldn't stop her lips from rising into a small smile. "So look, I've got Torchwick and the White Fang here," She points towards the bottom of the page, where a hastily drawn caricature of a candle and claw marks sit.

"Then we have Emerald and Mercury, and then Cinder's here." She pointed at the very top, where she had forgone pictures and just wrote names. "So, what do you see?"

Ruby stared at the paper, as if it would coax the information out.

"A tree?"

Weiss squinted at the drawing, "Well, I suppose that's true to an extent—" She shook her head, "Stop distracting me!"

"Sorry, it just kinda looks like a tree…" Ruby pouted, and Weiss sighed.

"It doesn't matter. What you _should_ be seeing is that Torchwick was hired, correct?"

Ruby leaned back, placing her finger under mouth. "Yeah, Blake had said that he mentioned something about his employers during the rally. So?"

"So it stands to reason that the White Fang were also hired."

"The Fang isn't a mercenary group."

Ruby's eyes brightened, and any trace of tiredness was forgotten.

"Blake! You're back!" She popped off the bed. "Is Yang here?"

Blake smiled, and stepped aside, leaving a rather sheepish looking Yang behind. She lifted her head to look at Ruby.

"Hey Rubes…" She said, scratching the back of her neck.

"Yang!" Ruby ran up to her, and starting poking her in the stomach. "You know the rule! No running away!"

Yang looked up in surprise, "No running… I thought that was just for Blake?"

"I'm right here you know."

Ruby shook her head. "No, it's for everyone. We don't run away." Blake shifted her gaze from the two squabbling sisters.

"Ahem." The other three members of RWBY turned to look at Weiss. She held up her tree diagram. "The plan?"

"What plan?" Yang asked as she sat down on her bed. Blake

"The plan to stop—" She sunk her head into her hands, "Why do I even bother?"

"I'm listening!" Ruby yelled.

"Good for you!" Weiss cleared her throat, "Anyways, the important part is that Cinder needs money to pull off everything she's trying to do. So if we find the money…"

"We find her." Ruby growled, and her eyes lit with a rare display of anger from the idealistic huntress.

"Or we cut off her funding and stop her there." Weiss reasoned, "That way we can hopefully end this without having to fight her."

"Great!" Yang said, "Got any ideas on how we're doing this?"

"I…" Weiss slumped, "have no idea."

"Do we know her last name?" Blake asked.

"Cinder's? No. It's probably something stupid, like… Red," Ruby answered.

Yang laughs, "I wouldn't call that stupid, _Ruby."_ A pillow had suddenly hit her in the face.

"Maybe we can find out. She said she was from Mistral, right?" Weiss pulled out her scroll. "If she came in through the normal channels, they should be a record at the Mistral embassy, here." She turned her scroll around to face the team. It showed an address for the embassy, along with a small chocolate smudge in the top right corner.

Ruby gasped, "Weiss! Did you eat my secret cookie stash?"

"I needed more blood sugar! It doesn't matter anyway!" She quickly pocketed her scroll. "We just need to go there and ask around, see what we can find out."

Blake shook her head, "They won't just hand us a key to their storage room. It's not like we have a warrant."

Ruby patted Crescent Rose, "We have guns."

"Oh God," Weiss groaned, "Are you really suggesting we attack a government facility?"

"It's not like it's a super-secret lab or anything." Ruby defended.

"You're asking us to commit terrorism!" Weiss's gaze shifted to Blake, "No offense."

She sighed, "None taken."

"We can just… wear masks!" Ruby said, jumping to her feet. "It will be the perfect disguise!"

"What about DNA? Fingerprints?" Blake argued, causing Weiss to give her a strange look. "What? I've done this before."

Ruby opened her mouth, but didn't speak.

Thankfully for the plan, Yang spoke up. "Don't they need something to compare those too?"

Blake shrugged. "Yeah, but how many four person groups containing a faunus, a white haired girl, and two sisters are there?"

They all turned silent.

"We'll just have to be careful then. Keep our aura on the whole time," Said Ruby, her voice gaining volume as she spoke.

"This is our chance. If we don't take it because we're afraid, we won't stop Cinder. We won't save Pyrrha, or Penny. We can't just stop because something might go wrong. We're going, tonight."

Yang grinned and whispered under her breath, "Good going sis."

"So..." Weiss interjected, "what's the plan?"

"We go to town, buy masks, and then we'll go to the embassy! Easy as pie!"

Weiss frowned. "Might not be the best idea for myself to accompany you. A mask may not be enough for people to avoid…" She thumbed her hair, "recognising me."

"There's no mask on the planet that could hide my hair." She glared at Ruby's raised hand, "And no, there's no way on Remnant you're convincing me to cut it, so don't try."

Weiss was expecting Ruby to look sad at the news. Instead, she looked almost… happy?

"Alright, then me and Blake—"

"Blake and I."

"Will go there, break in, get the file, and get out." She turned to Weiss.

"Um, quick question?" She asked with her hands clasped together.

"…Yes Ruby?"

"What are we looking for?"

Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose.

"A file of all the people whose name starts with a C that came into the city recently. It should be labeled with a C. Think you can remember that?"

Ruby leaned back, "Jeez, sorry."

Weiss sighed, "No, its fine. It's been a long day."

"Well, looks like it's about to get longer." Yang smirked, and tugged Weiss over to her side. "While those two are busy busting into a place; how about you and I head over to my 'friend' I talked about."

"Certainly. It will be better than waiting around here."

"But Weiss, what if we need—backup! And you're too busy with Yang? Maybe you should stay here and plan some more."

Weiss rolled her eyes, "I can't plan anything else until I get more information. Besides, this way I can bring Yang with me."

"But what if—OW!" Weiss started pulling Ruby out by her ear, causing her to yelp. She turned around and stared at her two teammates.

"One moment." She smiled as sweet as cough syrup. Then she slammed the door. The room went silent.

Yang broke it.

"Sooo… mood swings, eating everything in sight… got any ideas?"

Blake narrowed her eyes, "You're not suggesting…?"

"Oh God no!" Yang shuddered, "We can barely handle one Schnee. Two would probably kill us." She started to rummage through Weiss's bed.

"I was thinking she's on some meds that she hasn't told us about. Want to help me look?"

Blake rolled her eyes, but got up and joined Yang's rummaging.

"You know, it could just be that's she's hungry and tired."

"Yeah, but where's the drama in that?"

* * *

"Okay Weiss, you can stop pulling my ear now!" Ruby wailed, scratching at the heiress's arm. Weiss ignored her, allowing her aura to block Ruby's attempt of escape. She drug her leader down the public washrooms and threw her in. She locked the door behind her when she went in.

"Now, tell me what your problem is!" Weiss demands, pulling Ruby to her feet.

"I don't have a problem!" Ruby yells back, her arms crossed.

"Yes, you do. Why don't you want me to go with Yang?"

Her jaw clenches. "Maybe I just don't want you too!" She retains her expression for only a moment. "Yeah, okay that sucked."

"Ruby, just talk to me, alright? I need to know what's going on." She sat down by the wall, patting the empty space beside her.

Ruby huffed, but she sat down.

"Now," Weiss stared her in the eyes, "talk."

"You should be dead."

…Okay, she was not expecting that.

"What are you talking about?"

Ruby shifted her legs into a crossed position. "When the Goliath attacked again, it… it hurt you, really, really bad. You were losing a lot of blood, enough that I thought you were already dead." She sniffled.

"But then when the Goliath was dead, I crawled over to you and just started… wishing you to be okay."

Weiss took in a shuddering breath.

"Then you were. I passed out after that, but you got better." Ruby smiled, and turned to look at Weiss.

"That's what's going on. I don't know what happened in the forest, or why all those Grimm showed up, but I don't want to see you get hurt again. So please, stay here." She begged.

Weiss sat silently for a minute, before slapping Ruby across the face.

Ruby rubbed her face where she was hit. "Ow! What was that for?"

"That was for being an idiot!" growled Weiss. "You said it yourself; we can't stop because we're afraid. So stop being a hypocrite!"

Ruby glared at her.

"You are!"

"Fine." Ruby grumbled, "Fine." She got up.

"I'm not a hippo." She said as Weiss pulled herself up.

"Ruby?"

"Yes Weiss?"

THWACK!

"Ow! Stop hitting me!"

* * *

The scratching of pen on paper filled Qrow's room as he marked quizzes from his old students at Signal. A replacement had been assigned already, but he felt he should make the effort to leave him or her a clean state.

He went to take another drink, but he found his flask empty. He threw it away in disgust, and checked the mounted clock on the wall.

"11:30. Huh." He stood up and checked the hallway. Empty.

"No sign of the four troublemakers…"

He shrugged, and started to walk towards the kitchen. He had been expecting to see his nieces at least tonight, but he wasn't going to wait all night for them.

Not that he was going to sleep. Sleep was for civvies.

He passed by a window, nearly missing the flash of red he saw out of the corner of his eye. He stepped back, examining the courtyard.

Ruby, Blake, Yang, and Weiss were all sneaking across the ground, heading into Vale.

They kept checking their backs, seemingly afraid of being caught. They stayed low, and crept through bushes and the shadows created by the moon light.

He pulled out his scroll and messaged Ozpin. He needed to know he was going out.

Activating his semblance, Qrow followed the quartet until they arrived at Vale. From there the four split, Yang and Weiss rode into the city on Yang's bike, Ruby and Blake running towards the water front.

Internally groaning, he started to follow Yang and Weiss. His yellow haired niece had a habit of causing explosions where ever she went.

At least Ruby could be trusted to not do anything illegal.

* * *

After making a quick stop at a twenty-four hour clothing store (perfect for huntsmen and huntresses! ™) Ruby and Blake found themselves scoping out a small brick of a building near the docks. The office was a dull gray eyesore upon the rest of the city, and even Ruby's complete lack of design skills could tell it needed a new paint job.

Ruby yawned, "Any guards?"

Blake shifted her gaze away from her binoculars. "A few. We should be able to avoid them fairly easily."

"Good." Ruby said, getting up and stretching as she did so.

"So, before we go in. What did Yang say?" Blake winced. She was hoping they could avoid this discussion.

Ruby noticed her reluctance. "Oh come on Blake! You promised!"

"Yes. I did." She got up.

"She said that she didn't like Qrow being here. Said it reminded her of how he used to bring her into his office all the time. How he didn't trust her."

Ruby stared at her, her mouth creeping open.

"What?" Blake asked.

"Qrow… never did that. They never had any problems before."

Blake's eyes widened, "Really? Then why did she…?"

Ruby shifted her eyes towards the office. "I don't know. I mean, they had _some_ issues because of what happened, but she was never angry with him."

"I'm trying to help you Yang…" Blake mumbled, pulling out her weapon.

"Hm?"

"Is she lying? Is that what happened?"

Ruby didn't answer.

Blake started to vault down, but Ruby finally spoke up.

"She trusts you Blake. Yang doesn't trust many people." She looked up, her eyes begging, "Please, remember that."

Blake closed her eyes.

"Okay." Her voice was unsteady. She could almost feel the weight of Ruby's belief in her as she spoke.

"Let's go get started on our mission, alright?"

* * *

Meanwhile, across town. Yang rolled Bumblebee up to a dented parking metre in front of a surprisingly new looking building. The steady murmur of music could be heard coming in from the doors.

Yang stepped off her bike, leaning it against the curb. She took her helmet off and shook her head, locks of golden hair spilling out.

Weiss slowly peeled her rigid body off and stomped over to Yang.

"Do you have any idea how many traffic laws you just broke!" she said, glaring at Yang like she was a puppy killer.

"What? Really, traffic laws?" Yang laughed, "Those are just suggestions!"

Red and blue lights flashed from down the street.

Yang went pale, and said "Here's another suggestion, let's get inside right now!"

Yang ran in, Weiss quickly following on her heels. Faintly, they both heard a crow cawing in the background.

Two men, both wearing black suits with red ties, were waiting by the door. The moment they saw Yang however, they stumbled back and ran for the second set of doors. Weiss could vaguely hear screams of "It's her!"

She looked at Yang, "I take it they know you?"

Yang rubbed the back of her head, "I… might have blown this place up just before school started…" She smiled sheepishly.

Weiss rolled her eyes, "Of course. Is terrible long term thinking genetic in your family?"

"Hah!" Yang yelled, striking Weiss on the shoulder "Good to see you're back to normal."

Weiss stared at her. "Back to normal?"

"Yeah, you've been weird all day. You didn't notice?"

 _"Ruby!" she sang, "I've got something to show you!"_  
 _She didn't even like cookies!_

"No." she lied, "I haven't noticed anything." She pushed Yang towards the doors.

"Didn't we have an objective here?"

* * *

Blake and Ruby crept around the perimeter of the Mistral embassy, searching for an open window or a door left ajar. It was, perhaps, too much to hope for. Still, they had somehow lucked onto time travel, so Ruby thought they could be forgiven for assuming they'd be handed an entrance on a silver platter.

Her cheek twitched, and Ruby raised a hand to scratch it. Now that they were actually wearing them, she realised that ski masks had been a terrible idea. Her entire face felt coated in sweat despite the relative coolness of the night air.

Blake froze, her ears tilting down. She held up her hand, signing stop, then quickly ran around the corner of the building. A muffled shout and a quiet thud later, and the unconscious body of a security guard out for a quick smoke hit the ground in front of Ruby.

A hand beckoned from the corner, and Ruby quickly joined it. An open door await them, eagerly awaiting its chance to help save the world.

Blake crouched down, and Ruby quickly copied her stance. They crept through.

The door led to a concreate staircase. A glowing red exit sign hung above them, casting the room in an eerie red light. The quiet hum of lightbulbs provided the only other sound beyond Ruby's breathing, amplified as it was in the empty hall. A doorway showed only darkness, the lights were off in the building it seemed.

Blake pushed forward, slowing leaning around the corner of the door. Ears perked, she looked and listened for any more guards. The coast looked clear.

"Grab my hand." Blake whispered, holding the appendage towards Ruby. "I'll make sure you don't hit anything."

Nodding, Ruby grasped Blake's hand. She was pulled along, blinded in the total blackness of the embassy's hallways. Thankfully Blake could, and she guided her through the depths of the buildings.

Several times they had to find alternate routes due to cameras or a stationary guard. Still, it felt like they were making good time to Ruby.

Eventually Blake stopped, and squinted at what appeared to be wall.

"Records room," she whispered as she slowly opened a door. "If there's anything on Cinder, it'll be here."

There was light in this room, a small window allowing moonlight through. The walls were coated in square drawers, all of them a pale green. Ruby could barely make out labels above each wall, each one stating what letters the drawers contained. There was roughly twenty drawers on each wall.

Ruby gulped, she was hoping for something a bit more organized than this.

She whispered, "What do you think it'll be under? C? V for the festival? F for the festival?"

Frowning, Blake turned to her and said, "I don't know. I'm not even sure if they bothered to put a copy in here, but the computers would have been too heavily secured for us to access." She walked over to the far wall and pulled a drawer labeled A-C.

"I'll start here, you go look at the festival."

Ruby nodded, and pulled open the E-G drawer. A spider ran out, and she coughed violently.

Gritting her teeth, she began to thumb through the papers jammed into the tiny metal box. She saw emergency plans, fire escape systems, and enough files on Grimm to give her nightmares for the rest of her life.

Near the very back of the row she found something however. A robbery report, a few dozen Atlas mechs, fresh off the prototyping stage were stolen near Evergreen, a smallish settlement in Mistral.

It explained where the White Fang got some of their robots, but that's not what drew her attention. The file stated that the soldiers that lost the mech claimed they were ordered to drop them off on a train by a man who had still been in talks with the local government. Even under the threat of treason they still stated that they saw him, and they wound up discharged for medical reasons.

Someone appearing where they shouldn't be? Isn't that what Velvet said Coco saw?

"Ruby. I found something." Blake said, interrupting Ruby's thoughts. She quickly pocketed the file she was holding and turned around.

"What is it?"

"Transcripts for who's entered Vale from Mistral. There's…" Blake let out a sharp breath. "A lot of names on here."

Ruby grimaced. Too many to look through here. "Can you carry them all?"

Blake shook her head, "No, there's a few dozen here. I'll grab as many as I can carry."

"Good." Ruby glanced towards the window. "Let's get out of here then, I have a really bad fee—"

BANG!

A shotgun blast tore apart the drawer just right of Ruby's head. Whipping her head around, she saw a tall, dark haired man wielding two sawn off shotguns. Each gun was pointed towards one of the two teens. He stepped into the room, his expression a stone wall. Red shells coated his armored torso, and Ruby could make out a few grenades attached to his belt.

He spoke, his voice gruff and authoritative. "That's government property you're stealing."

Ruby summed up the situation in one word.

"Crap."

* * *

Surprisingly enough, Junior's bar was not open. The music was a test run, trying to determine how much, if any, of the sound system had survived from Yang's attack. The rest of the building resembled something still being built, rather than the established home of an information broker. Scaffolding zigzagged across the floor, giving the whole room the impression of an ant colony. Despite several layers of fresh paint Weiss could see scorch marks decorating the walls.

Weiss supposed that the twenty or so guards nervously pointing weapons at them were most likely the skeleton crew, left here only to ensure that vultures left this place alone.

Yang looked almost disappointed.

"Guess whose back?" She yelled, before quickly peering over the mass of armed mobsters. "I kinda need to talk to Junior, so if you folk wouldn't mind stepping aside?" They hesitated, before quickly parting like the sea to a boat, allowing the two huntresses to pass.

Weiss noted the bruises adorning their faces. Assuming they had aura, Yang would have had to hit them with considerable force to leave those marks. It was a miracle no one died.

A black haired man sat at the surprisingly untouched bar. He clasped a bottle of wine like it was his only supply of air. His clothes were dirty, smudged with dirt and other questionable substances. Her first impression was that of an old drunk, lost to the world

Then he raised his gaze towards her, and she saw the eyes of a man who knew exactly what he was looking at, and exactly how to get what he wanted. He shifted his eyes towards Yang, and he grimaced.

"Blondie. What are you doing here?" He stood up, reaching for a weapon that wasn't there.

"Relax Junior," Yang hopped onto a stool. "I'm just here for some info, that's all."

"Right." He pointed to Weiss. "So what's the Schnee heiress doing here?"

Weiss bit back a retort. Angering their best lead would help no one.

Yang clearly didn't share her restraint. "She's with me, and her name's Weiss. Got it?" She leaned in. "And you forgot to call me sir."

His appearance soon matched Weiss's wardrobe, and he bent himself away from the smirking blond. Coughing, he straightened his tie.

"What do you want to know? Uh, Sir."

Yang's smirk grew to a grin, and she poked Weiss on the shoulder.

"What?"

"The thing you had, I need to see it!"

Weiss rolled her eyes. She sidestepped Yang and said, "We need to know everything you have on someone named Cinder, Emerald Sustrai, Mercury Black, and…" She turned to Yang, "What did Ruby say that girl with the parasol was named?"

Yang shut her eyes, and her words came out in a growl.

"Neo."

"Right. Neo. What do you have?"

Junior looked at her. Then he shook his head, laughing softly.

"With that little information? I need full names, scroll numbers, addresses. With a first name, I could maybe find them in a few years. Until then, you kids are on your own."

Yang stormed up to him, Ember Celica deployed. "We don't have years! We need those names NOW!"

Weiss held up her arms and stopped her, flinching at the pressure Yang was putting against her. She quickly turned to Junior.

"I understand. _As does my teammate._ " A snort from Yang, "So we'll leave you alone. Thank you for your time." She walked away, pulling Yang along with her.

They were nearly at the door when Junior shouted, "Wait!" He set down his drink and came up to them.

"You said Mercury _Black,_ right?"

"Yeah, that's what she said. Do you need me to repeat it?" said Yang, and Weiss could feel the heat wafting off from her form.

Junior chose to quickly continue, "I don't know a Mercury Black, but I do know a Marcus Black." He crossed his arms and sighed, "He's… an assassin. A good one. Specializes in taking on huntsmen and huntresses."

"There's people who do that?" questioned Yang, considerably calmed down.

"Of course there is. You tend to make enemies doing what they do." He sighed, and rubbed the bride of his nose. "Look, rumour has it that he was killed a few weeks ago. If this Mercury guy is who I think it is, then he's the one who killed him."

"One more death we can add to her list then."

"What?"

"Where can we find him?" Yang demanded.

Junior gaped at her, "You can't be serious. Did you not hear what I just said? He killed a guy who kills people far better than you are. He. Will. Kill you."

Yang suddenly grabbed him by the neck and pulled him in, completely ignoring the ominous crack that echoed through the club. Various members of the crowd pulled out their weapons and started to approach.

Yang either didn't notice or didn't care.

"I don't care what you think. Where is he? Tell me, or I'll make what happened here last time look like a little kid having a tantrum!"

 _Oh God what is she doing?_

Weiss quickly pulled her away, and for a minute Yang's anger was directed towards her. Yang's lips were pulled into a feral snarl, teeth bared against the wind. Her eyes were alight with red, a darker crimson than Weiss could ever remember seeing.

Yang seemed to realize what she had done, and she looked around at the now much larger group of rather trigger happy grunts surrounding the two. Scowling, she pushed them aside and made a run for the door.

Throwing a quick apology, Weiss hurried to catch up with her teammate.

Outside, Yang paced on the sidewalk, her aura flaring like a sunset. Weiss could hear her muttering words to herself.

"Are you alright?" She asked in concern.

"I'm fine!" Yang spat, before letting out a massive groan, verging on a scream.

She stopped, and when she opened her eyes they were back to their normal purple.

"I just… needed a minute." She said, slowly inhaling a large breath.

Weiss doubted her, but didn't press the issue.

"So Mercury's an assassin, huh?" Yang chuckled humorlessly, "Should have known."

"Quite." A wry grin snuck on to Weiss's face. "We already knew about the first three letters."

Yang smiled, chuckled, and then finally burst out into a real laugh.

"Careful Schnee, you might start losing that ice queen rep if you keep acting like that."

Weiss rolled her eyes.

"Let's go back to the dorm room. I refuse to allow this night to interfere with our sleeping schedule." She ordered, slipping into her spot behind Yang on the bike.

"Fine." Yang clipped on her helmet.

"I just hope Ruby and Blake had better luck at the embassy."

* * *

Ruby leapt back, swirling her scythe around to block the huntsman attacks.

He smirked, and threw a red grenade at her feet.

She began to jump, but she wasn't fast enough.

Blake charged, both swords dancing, but he kept blocking every blow, and soon she found herself taking a shot and being sent flying into the wall.

Ruby pushed herself to her feet despite her body's complaints. She planted Crescent Rose's blade into the ground and started firing, the loud crack of the high powered sniper rifle magnified in the embassy's entrance way. Sweat beaded down her forehead, her arms struggled to keep pulling back the bolt of her weapon.

They had tried to attack him in the halls, but he had swept them aside as easily as one would a fly. Crashing through at least a dozen walls, the eventually found themselves out here, in open. Unarmed government employees ran around them, and in between shots Ruby could hear police sirens steadily getting louder.

Thankfully for the two huntresses-in-training, the large space appeared to hinder their foe more than it did them. For the first time in the 'fight' the huntsman was forced to find cover, his shotguns unable to match Ruby's scythe at range.

"Blake!" She orders, hoping that her teammate will understand what she's asking. A cloud of fire detonates by her head.

Blake followed, and in fact one ups her expectations by leaving a clone behind. She ran up, quick and silent, under the cover of darkness and struck the huntsman.

He flew out of his cover, defending from Blake's flurry of attacks. Despite the danger they were both in; Ruby couldn't help but admire their opponent. Blake was one of the fastest fighters Ruby knew, even counting herself. His weapons and armor suggested that he did not focus on speed, yet he was still easily keeping up.

She shook out the thoughts and aimed. With Blake so close she had to be careful, one centimetre off and Blake would be the one taking the blow.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Her aim was true, and three high caliber bullets rammed into his neck. He stumbled, finally thrown off balance, and Blake redoubled her efforts.

She spun, she jumped, she _danced_ around her foe. Her weapons were a blur, each sword smashing into hard armor.

He began to fire, clouds of flame and ice passing within a hairs length from Blake. But she kept going, using her ribbon to anchor herself on her opponent.

Ruby lifted up her scythe and threw herself into the brawl. She used her weapon's massive length to provide Blake a stepping stone, and the two turned into a red and black whirl of violence.

Their opponent grunted each time he was hit, and each time it sounded more and more painful. His shotguns proved useless when both of his opponents were moving as quickly as they were.

So he pulled out a grenade and detonated it.

A blast of fire threw both girls outwards, their auras dissipating into the wind. Blake landed relatively softly, but Ruby hit the ground hard, and with a disturbing crack.

"Ruby!" She yelled, heedless to the danger. She tried to run over, but a gun barrel to the nose quickly put her down.

She looked up, and saw the sneering face of the enemy Huntsman. Despite the exertions of the battle, he still looked nearly identical to when they started, sans a rather large amount of ammunition.

He pointed his gun at her. "I want answers. Who are you, and why are you here?" He asked, stepping on top of her chest.

"Talk." He leaned in, "Or I blow your brains all over this nice clean floor."

Her eyes darted to where her sword laid. She could just barely reach—

A boot stomped down on her hand, and she could hear the bones snap. She cried out in pain, biting down on her tongue. She could taste her blood.

"You just destroyed a few thousand dollars of government property. This is a terror attack, do you understand? I'm trying to help you for crying out lo—Gah!" Blake heard a wet squelch, and suddenly a blood red sword was jammed through the huntsman's heart. His aura fizzled out; he fell to the ground with a splash.

Standing above him was a tall faunus, a white mask covering his face. He shook the sword, and drops of blood splattered across Blake's terrified expression. Red hair drew her eyes away from his black jacket, and she could feel her skin crawl.

"My little darling Blake." He whispered, his voice thick as caramel. "It's been such a long time…"

She tried to push away, grab her weapon, run, anything! But Adam rammed his sword down on her broken hand.

"Now now my kitten," He leaned in, his breath scented with death and decay.

"What did I tell you about running?"

She kicked him, hard as she could. But he still had aura, and she was spent. He laughed.

"Why are you scared of me kitten?" He said, twisting his sword around. "I just want to help you, bring you away from that Schnee spawn."

Blake spat at him, a thick glob of blood sticking to his otherwise clean appearance.

"Shut…up."

He stomped down on her nose, driving the assuredly broken pieces down into her skull. She felt a trickle of liquid pooling by her mouth, and she desperately hoped it was blood.

"But you've given me no choice." He continued, as if he hadn't nearly killed her. "I have a job to do, and unfortunately, your death is part of it."

He got up, took both his feet off of her, and swung his sword down in an arc. When it reached the neck however, her body disintegrated into smoke. Scowling, he followed the trail of blood. He saw Blake pick Ruby up and start running.

He ran after them, but once Blake cleared the door she brought the wall down. A pile of rubble collapsed in front of him.

He roared, sounding more like a Grimm than a person.

"This isn't over yet!"

* * *

Yang and Weiss were almost back to Beacon when they remembered Blake and Ruby didn't have a way back. They drove over to the embassy, but stopped a few blocks away once they saw the sirens of police cars.

"Looks like the stealth part of their mission failed," Weiss remarked.

"No kidding." Yang killed the engine and cupped her ear.

"What are you doing?" Weiss asked as she stepped off the bike.

"Don't you hear that?" Yang started running towards an alley. "Come on! It's over here!"

They both stepped into the alley, and Yang felt her heart plummet. Lying on the ground in front of them was the broken bodies of Ruby and Blake. Ruby still appeared to be breathing, although the blood in her hair was far from comforting.

But Blake looked like a corpse. Her skin was void of all colour, except for the browning blood that coated her clothes. Yang could see straight through her hand, could see the muscle and bone's shattered by whatever had created the wound.

She fell to her knees, vaguely aware of Weiss attempting arouse Ruby. Forgetting, or simply not caring about the lessons she learned about not moving an injured person, she shook Blake shoulders.

"Blake? Blake? Can you hear me? Blake!" She cried, ignorant of the puddle of blood her hair was resting in.

Blake did not stir.

"We, we need to get them to a hospital." Weiss blathered, despite the rather obvious fact that no doctor could save Blake. "I'll just call an ambulance and…"

Yang ignored her, and lifted Blake into a hug.

"Please…" She whispered, "I'm sorry for lying. I'm so, so sorry. Don't…"

Weiss began to dial, but she was stopped by a yellow glow that began to surround both Yang and Blake. It was subtle, only visible thanks to the night sky.

Slowly, she saw the muscle in Blake's hand re-knit itself. The colour in her skin came back, and soon Weiss could hear her begin breathing again.

She dropped the scroll, and went to pull Yang off of her partner, but she was passed out.

 _I just started… wishing that you'd be okay._

What in the world was going on?

* * *

After Yang left, Junior grabbed the strongest alcohol he carried and chugged the bottle. After dealing with Blondie, he was just grateful she didn't destroy anything again. It wasn't his fault if she got herself killed.

Suddenly he felt the sharp edge of a sword pressed against his neck. The face of a rather pissed off looking Huntsmen entered his view.

"I need to know everything you just told that girl." The man grabbed Junior's drink and took a swig.

"O-of course."

What was it with him and violent people?


	10. Dealing with Change-Part 2

The view from Ozpin's office was quite magnificent.

On a good day, the sole occupant of the room could nearly see the other end of Vale; see the children, the fathers, the mothers, all the innocent people going about their daily lives. Enjoying the peace so hard-wrought by huntsmen and huntresses.

A peace growing ever more fragile, it seemed.

"As far as I understand it," Ozpin said, turning his gaze from the outside world back to his most trusted operative. The man looked unusually sober, his flask forgotten on his belt.

"Your niece, and one of her teammates, went to a known information broker and queried about these names?" He pointed at a hastily written note, scratched out in Qrow's handwriting.

Qrow nodded. "That's what the guy said."

Ozpin set down his mug, and sighed.

"Three days. Three days and they've started some vigilante hunt." He picked up the papers, reading the list.

"Yeah, gotta admit," Qrow leaned back, "In between cursing them out with every swear I know, I'm actually impressed. How long did it take my team? A few months?"

"Indeed." He flipped the page, "Just these names?"

"Yeah, or at least that's all he'll admit."

Ozpin sat down, and pulled out his scroll.

"And you think these names are related to their battle earlier this week?" Ozpin asked while tapping out a message.

Qrow snorted, "Unless they've managed to avoid attention from everyone in Vale, I don't see what else it could be." He leaned in, trying to read his scroll.

"Telling Ironwood?" He scowled, "Why is he getting involved?"

"We need more information." Ozpin reminded, "We have no idea who these people are."

"Not quite, I know the name Black. Assassin. He kills huntsmen." He stopped, his brow furrowing, "Although the guy they asked about had a different first name."

"An assassin? What in the world are they doing looking for an assassin?"

"Easy Oz," Qrow held up his hands, "They weren't looking to hire him." His features clouded.

"Probably."

Ozpin let out a sigh, and his scroll dinged. He read the recently delivered message.

 _-Ozpin_

 _I'll need to run most of these names through our computers, but this Neo woman, can you get a description? I have a theory._

 _Ironwood out._

"Tin man answered already?"

Remember, he's your best operative...

"Yes, and he has nothing. Yet." Ozpin turned to face the window.

"He needs a description for Neo, whoever he or she is. Try and get one from Yang."

"Great." Qrow groaned, "I'll just go ask, and when she starts wondering how I know?"

"I told you."

"...That'll do."

* * *

Adam.

It always came back to Adam.

Never mattered how far Blake ran, he always found her.

She ran from the fragments of her family, he found her lying in a ditch.

She ran from the White Fang, he found her at Beacon.

She ran to a different timeline, and he still found her.

(Was he a bull faunus or a bloodhound?)

What was it going to take to lose him? Was she going to have to kill him? Is that what it was going to take?

"Blake?" Weiss shook her shoulder, "Are you listening?"

She shook her head, unkempt hair flying into sight. Her team, all sitting at a table in the library, open books scattered around them, looked at her with expressions ranging from concern to annoyance.

She opened a book, an old collection of fairy tales, and said, "I'm busy."

Weiss snorted, and began a retort. However, Yang quickly kicked her.

"So, uh…" Yang scratched the back of her neck. "Find anything?"

"…No."

"Alright then." She glanced at the other two members of her team.

"You two have any luck?"

Weiss sighed, and closed a textbook marked with Known Semblances: A-Z

"Nothing here." She leaned back, resting her head against the neck of the chair.

"I've… got nothing." Ruby admitted, "But I'll have lots of stories to tell next time we go camping!"

"Great." Yang set her chin on the table, blowing away a string of hair. "That was a well spent three hours."

"Come on Yang!" Ruby grabbed her sister's shoulders and gestured towards the shelves. "We still have lots of books to read!"

"That doesn't make me feel better."

"Yang…" Ruby pouted while sitting down and crossing her arms.

"She has a point." Weiss said, quickly silencing her partner's response.

"We don't have all day, and we're running low on things that seem…" She picked up a comic book that was set in a pile labeled, Theories.

"Probable."

"Those are totally possible!"

"They're comics!"

"So? We've time traveled!"

"…Touché."

"Then can we go get breakfast?" Yang asked, already up and pushing in her chair.

Ruby leapt to her feet, and said, "Brilliant idea Yang!"

Yang smirked, and bowed.

"Why thank you Ruby." She looked up, straight into her sisters eyes.

They both started to laugh.

"You two…" Weiss grumbled, but her voice lacked any malice. She got up, and they started to leave.

"You coming Blake?" Ruby asked when she noticed that only three had started walking.

Blake waved them away, "In a few minutes, I'm going to finish up this chapter."

Accepting her answer, Ruby and the others left. However, Yang lingered at the exit.

"…Do you need to talk?" Yang asked turning to face her teammate.

Blake grumbled, and turned to face her teammate. "About what?"

Yang looked away, taking a steadying breath before she responded.

"About him."

The words hit like a train, pushing a button she didn't even know she had.

"Like you talked yesterday?" She spat, her voice angrier than she had ever heard it.

Yang's gaze fell, and Blake immediately wished to take her words back. But before she could apologize, Yang left, heavy footsteps pounding on the hallway floor.

She groaned, and leaned back in her chair.

That wasn't fair to Yang. She was just trying to help, and she knew that. But she couldn't stop looking at her, and seeing the lies spewing from her mouth, taking her for a fool, playing on her naivety and—

Blake took a breath, her heart rate plummeting back into normal rhythm. She got up, and started walking towards the exit, intent on finding and apologizing to Yang.

Once she reached the doors however, two men wearing suits quickly walked up to her.

"Excuse me, Miss Belladonna?" The man on the right—a tall, dark-haired man wearing shades and a grey suit—asked.

"Y-yes?"

He pulled out a police badge.

"You need to come with me."

* * *

She should have been angry with Blake.

Really, she should have.

It wouldn't have been her fault—not really—but at least it would have made sense.

She felt concern, guilt, confusion, but not anger.

Someone bumped into her in the line for food, and Yang moved up. She grabbed a few fish sticks, a few veggies, but her focus was far away from the cafeteria.

At least it made sense, to a degree. Adam was back, and she could see how that could screw someone up.

It certainly made her want to hit something.

But Blake needed to let someone in, for her own sake if nothing else. Adam was too dangerous to take on alone. But any trust between the two of them was broken, and it was her fault.

She just wished Blake would talk to her, give her a chance to explain. All she needed was a few minutes, that's it—

"Yang?" Ruby waved her hand in front of her, drawing her out of her thoughts. "You awake?

Weiss was eyeing her fork, seemingly contemplating whether to stab herself with it. "For once, could someone pay attention?"

"I was paying attention!"

"Yes, but you always pay attention."

"I'm listening now." Yang said, interrupting the two. "What is it?"

Ruby gestured to her partner, and said "Weiss here has a plan!" She turned and looked at her.

"Tell everyone in the room, will you?" Weiss scolded, before clearing her throat. "My father's company has a few scientists that…well…"

"You've got blackmail material on?"

To her credit, Weiss merely grimaced at her words.

"Quite. Since we clearly don't have any other options, I thought, perhaps, we could send DNA samples?" Seeing the Ruby and Yang's frowns, she quickly clarified, "They won't tell anyone what they find, believe me."

Yang took a bite of her fish. Ruby stared at her plate.

"…We don't have any other options left?" Ruby asked, her voice cracking slightly.

"Not unless you _really_ want to start using comic books." Weiss pointed her fork at Yang, "What do you think?"

"Hm?" Yang coughed, "Yeah, sure. Go ahead. Want the sample now?"

"No, it'd be contaminated by your food." She rested her chin on her hands, "Get it next morning. You do know how, right?"

"Inside of your cheek?"

She had done it before, since DNA was needed for the Beacon transcripts, along with blood typing, medical history, and, well, species. Those had been the hardest for her to fake, since she didn't have access to a doctor, or a medical lab, or anything really—

Whoa, where did that come from?

Yang clutched her head, a sharp prick of pain spreading out from the base of her skull.

Ruby leaned in, and asked, "You okay Yang?"

She grunted, "I'm fine Rubes." A bolt of pain lanced through her, bringing a groan to her lips. "Just… got hit harder than I thought yesterday."

Ruby's face scrunched up in confusion, "When did you get into a fight yesterday?"

"Right after…" She stopped, and looked up.

When did she get hit?

"Should we take you to the infirmary?" Weiss asked, her planning forgotten.

Yang slowly shook her head, "No, no I'm good." She smiled weakly at her teammate, "Just a headache."

Weiss didn't look convinced, but she started to eat rather than push for answers. Yang quickly joined her, picking up a now cooled fish stick and swirling it in small pool of ketchup.

Suddenly she heard a sharp pinging sound, and Yang looked up to see Weiss, her face turning into a rather green hue.

"…What?"

She swallowed, "Why are you eating _fish?_ For _breakfast?"_

Yang shrugged, "I wanted to? Why is that such a big deal?"

"Because it's _fish!"_ She sputtered, "Terrible fish at that!"

"What's wrong with fish sticks?"

"They taste horrible and disgusting and _you're having them for breakfast!"_

Ruby snickered, causing Weiss to glare at her.

"What's so funny?"

"We grew up on an island."

Weiss stared at her. "…So?"

"Fish was cheap."

Weiss sat in silence, before sighing and setting her head into her now crossed arms.

"Fine, enjoy your frozen fish sticks, you tasteless brute."

Yang smirked, "Don't mind if I do…" She plopped one in her mouth, her eyes locked on Weiss the whole time.

"Make a spectacle of it, will you…" She grumbled.

Yang ate the rest of the fish, but she had to admit that Weiss wasn't wrong; they were terrible fish. Frozen for sure.

Ruby opened her scroll, and said, "Is Blake coming?"

"She said she was, so she will." Yang responded, pushing away the fish.

Weiss glanced at the time worriedly, "It has been a rather long time. Perhaps we should go check on her?"

Yang sighed, "It won't help, alright? She needs space, not us following her around like puppies." She got up, picking up her tray, "I'm going to go dump this."

"Finally came to your senses?"

"No, Weiss." She walked away, "Just lost my appetite."

"I wonder why?" Weiss muttered.

Ruby laughed softly, and got up to grab some juice. However, her juice gaining quest was interrupted by the surprise appearance of her uncle.

"Uncle Qrow!" She yelled, before remembering the previous day. "Oh, uh, sorry for not visiting yesterday…"

"Forget about that, where's Yang?"

"Right here." She slid beside Ruby, "What's going on?"

He jerked his head backwards, and started to speed-walk towards the exit.

"Blake's being questioned in Ozpin's office." He growled, his hands clenching into fists. "Some jackass detective thinks they can just barge in here and—" Yang started to run, quickly outpacing the rest of the group.

"Yang, wait!" Qrow and Ruby yelled. Ruby sprinted towards Yang, forcing her to stop.

"Get out of my way!" She howled, pushing against Ruby. Qrow grabbed her arms and held her still.

"Yang, listen to me!" Qrow said, "If you go up there and do what I think you're about to do, you'll both be arrested!" He sighed, and let her go.

"Just… give me a few minutes, and I'll handle it." His fingers brushed the hilt of his sword.

"One way or another."

* * *

"I don't know what you're talking about!"

Tall cop—Detective Herb—leaned in, close enough that Blake could feel his breath. He smelt of coffee and stale fast food.

"A man's dead, and you were there, and we know it! Stop pretending!"

Blake pushed him away, heedless of her strength, and threw him into the desk. He scowled, and was likely about to accuse her of assault. Luckily Ozpin stepped in front of him.

"Mr. Herb—"

" _Detective."_

"While I understand your urgency, please do remember that you are talking to a seventeen year old girl." He tapped his cane, and turned to her.

"Miss Belladonna, if you could explain your whereabouts last night, I'm certain we could get this all cleaned up." He smiled, and Blake was thankful to have one ally against the police.

Ever since they dragged her away from the library and brought her to Ozpin's office—apparently protocol for when a huntress-in-training was arrested—she'd been trying to fend off the police's questions. Ozpin had likely been the only reason they stayed with legal methods.

Still, she was running out of ways to distract them, and she honestly had no idea how she was going to escape the charges. She had no alibi, and no way to explain away the blood she had left behind.

 _Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

"Like she'll tell the truth." Herb said with a sneer. He pulled out his scroll, expanding it and setting up a video.

"It shows everything right here," He started, pointing at the video. As she watched, Blake's heart sank like a stone. It was their fight in the embassy, captured on the security cameras.

This was the reason she didn't go through the front entrance in the first place!

"See?" The video had reached the point where Adam had attacked her arm—honestly she was half-surprised someone didn't remove that part—and he was franticly pointing at her, more specifically her ears.

"It was her!"

Ozpin didn't react, although Blake could see his grip on his cane tighten slightly.

"Or perhaps it was another faunus with similar features, or someone wearing novelty ears." He argued, slowly walking towards the detective.

Herb merely snorted, "The picture quality isn't that bad." He pointed at Blake, "I've never met her, and I can still tell they're the same person!"

"It's a dark video. More than that," He picked up his mug and took a drink, "My own sources indicate that Miss Belladonna was at a bar last night."

Herb, to his credit, wasn't thrown by Ozpin's words. "Really? And would your sources happen to have any evidence?"

"Eyewitness statements." Ozpin countered immediately, "Fingerprint evidence, a report from a government operative whose name I cannot disclose." He sipped, "Anything else?"

Herb smirked.

"Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to see those." Ozpin stared at him for a moment, and then handed him a thick folder. Herb began to go through it, as Blake could hear him mumble out unintelligible words under his breath.

Despite what it meant, she was grateful for the distraction. If he saw her now, he'd probably arrest her just for how she looked. Her hands were gripping the sides of her chair, and her whole body felt coated in sweat.

Before long, he turned to her, a slight grin plastered on his face.

"So, Belladonna, "He began, flipping the folder back to the front. "I'm going to ask a few questions about what happened last night, and you're going to answer them. Got it?"

Oh crap.

"I-I understand."

"So, when you arrived at the bar, what happened?" He asked, his grin turning feral.

 _Just… just make it up. What would Yang most likely do?_

Suddenly an idea came to her, and she began to speak.

"We, Yang and Weiss and—and myself, we entered, and all the workers in there threatened us with guns." She held her breath.

Surprisingly, his grin vanished at her words, and he flipped to the next page.

"Who were you meeting?"

Well, first thing that came to mind worked last time, so…

"Junior, an information broker."

His scowl grew.

"Was the club operational?"

"No, it was being remodeled, or repaired, I'm not sure."

He was nearly growling now, held back only by Ozpin's increasingly smug expression.

"Did you enter the bar straight away?"

"No, we spent a little time in the entrance way."

Now the growl slipped out, and he threw the pages at Ozpin.

"She talked with her friends, got her story straight. This proves nothing!" He slammed his hands, now balled into fists, down on the table. "I have video evidence!"

The door opened, and Blake turned to see Qrow stomping across the office.

"Hey, you." He said, causing Herb to turn. "Yeah, you're the right idiot."

Herb snarled, and said, "You have five seconds to rephrase that."

Qrow grinned, an expression that reminded Blake more of a feeding Grimm than a human. "Really now? Or what? You'll take on a huntsman?"

"What do you want?" Herb demanded, crossing his arms. "I'm in the middle of an investigation."

"Really now? Cause all I see is you _interrogating my niece_." He jerked his thumb towards Blake.

… _What?_

"Um…" Herb glanced towards her ears.

Qrow sighed, and said, "Adopted."

"Alright then, your _niece_ stopped being a minor the moment she became a huntress." Herb explained, "And even if she wasn't, she committed a terrorist attack!"

While the two men stared at each other, Ozpin stared at the screen. His eyes focused on Blake's form, and then on Blake herself.

"Gentlemen," He interrupted, "If you would return to the screen, I believe we can get this all straightened out." They both looked at him, and then at the screen.

"Mr. Herb—"

" _Detective."_

"—if you notice, your suspect suffered a severe wound to their hand, right here." He pointed to Adam stabbing her hand. "If Miss Belladonna was the suspect, shouldn't she have the same wound?"

Herb glanced at her, and her hand. "Medical treatment and a ton of makeup."

Ozpin sipped his coffee. "Medical treatment that she never received. Our records will back that up."

Herb was silent; he could tell his case was unraveling around him. The funny part, Blake thought, was that he was right. What was real was less likely than fiction.

…Oh God, her life was insane.

"…I'm sorry for taking up your time." Herb said tonelessly, "If you remember anything else, please call me." He handed her a card, and walked off.

"…Prick." Qrow spat after he left. He turned to her. "You okay?"

 _Not even close._

"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

"Good." Qrow stretched, "Let's head down. Oh, and Oz?" He jabbed his finger towards the headmaster.

"Next time, I get here before he starts asking questions."

Ozpin sighed, "Hopefully there won't be a next time." He glanced at Blake.

"Although something tells me there will."

* * *

After a few quick explanations, Qrow and team RWBY had returned to their room, intent on relaxing after a rather serious morning. The four girls had collapsed onto Blake's bed, Blake looking like she wanted nothing more than to fall under its covers and sleep.

"So, this is what you do when we give you four beds." Qrow plucked the cables holding up Ruby's bunk, filling the room with a twang.

"They're more stable then they look." Weiss explained.

"I'm sure." Qrow sighed, and sat down on Weiss's bed. "Look, I know what happened last night—"

"Of course you do," Yang muttered.

"And I just have to say," He smiled slightly, "Congratulations! You are officially the youngest team to become vigilantes."

Ruby tilted her head, "Is it because I'm younger?"

"No, it's because todays your third day at Beacon, and you've already had a teammate arrested."

"Oh."

"Speaking of which, what happened?" Yang asked; her hands balled into fists.

"Well, your girlfriend over here—"

 _"What?!"_ Both Blake and Yang shouted. Qrow rolled his eyes in response.

"Fine, your "Bed buddy" got _mistaken_ for someone who got stabbed in an embassy in Vale."

Blake looked away, while Yang began to rub the back of her hand. Weiss had a perfect poker face, and Ruby…

Well, she tried.

"Ruby…" Qrow sighed, "I _know_ that you were there." He glanced towards the door, half expecting to see a police officer there. Ruby, meanwhile, just glared at him.

"Then why defend her?" Yang demanded, "Why are you here in the first place?"

"Because she's pretty much my niece—"

"Huh?"

"And because…" He sighed, "Because that person you four fought at the dust shop is far more dangerous than a group of teenagers should have to fight."

The room went silent. Qrow seemed to be waiting for the team to answer, but none of them had any idea of what to say. Of course she was dangerous. They all knew that, but they couldn't explain that to Qrow. He'd think they were crazy!

"So, you wanted to protect us?" Ruby said slowly, calculated. Relatively speaking.

Qrow nodded.

"You didn't need to do that." Yang argued, "We can handle ourselves!"

"You don't know this woman like I do."

"Yes we do!"

Blake elbowed Yang, whispering, "Shut up!" To her just under her breath.

Qrow raised a brow, and leaned back. "Really now? What's her name then?"

"Cinder." Yang blurted.

Ruby tensed, briefly noticing the similar movements her teammates made. Even Yang's anger faded into shock.

"Cinder, huh." Qrow said, and he leaned forward. "Are you sure?"

Yang stayed quiet, leaving his gaze to fall on Ruby.

"Um… yes?" She squeaked softly, unable to meet Qrow's eyes.

"Huh. Cinder…" he pulled out his scroll, and Ruby could vaguely see some sort of messaging program launch up.

"How'd you find that out?" He asked. His focus remained on his screen, but Ruby knew better than to assume he wasn't paying attention.

"We, uh…" She mumbled, desperately trying to come up with some kind of explanation that made sense.

Thankfully, Blake came to her rescue.

"I have some old friends…" She began, "In the White Fang. They sent me a message with some names, and descriptions, of people working with the Fang. Cinder matched the woman who attacked us."

Qrow was silent, and Ruby worried that he didn't believe Blake, that he was about to send them off to some padded room.

"Alright then." He said instead, and got up to leave. "Send me the file later. Oh, and Yang?"

"…Yes?"

"You're holding Blake's hand."

Yang and Blake both whipped their heads around, mouths wide open. However, they found their hands nowhere near each other.

Qrow's laughter echoed in from the hallway, and Yang growled. She ran up to the door, leaned out, and yelled, "Not! Funny!"

Blake had buried her head in her pillow, red creeping towards her ears. Ruby snickered softly, and even Weiss seemed to be holding back a few giggles.

Yang glanced at them, "Not a word, or I'll spray paint Crescent Rose!"

Ruby's mirth vanished, and she gaped at Yang. "You wouldn't!"

"Don't push me."

While spray painting her weapon wouldn't damage it—Yang was smart enough to buy the right paints—she'd have to spend hours scraping it off, and disassembling it, and buying solvents…

"Fine," She eventually conceded.

"Good." Yang sighed, and mumbled, "We only shared a bed once…"

"Um, what?"

 _"Not a word!"_

* * *

It was a bad day when Ozpin considered switching to decaf. It was an _exhausting_ day when he considered expresso.

Thankfully, he hadn't reached that stage yet, but the information Qrow pulled out of Team RWBY was threatening to push him there.

Names, apparently gained from a White Fang contact by Blake Belladonna. Names, and descriptions.

Three women, one man. One an assassin, one a criminal-for-hire, (Thank you Ironwood) and two unknowns.

He groaned, and briefly considered buying some painkillers. He could feel the headache forming at the base of his skull.

The whole week had produced more questions than answers, and it didn't appear to be slowing down much. He still didn't know why or how a Grimm horde had attacked the new initiates, nor how Weiss recovered from her wound.

On top of that, there was something off about the information Blake had acquired. The odds of any member of the White Fang being willing to talk to her was incredibly low. Her actions when she left the group had ensured that.

He sighed, and got out of his desk. He'd spent enough time here tonight, he needed sleep.

Tomorrow would come soon enough.

* * *

Deep inside a White Fang warehouse, two people sat in a soundproofed office. Both were leaders of their own groups, and both had vastly different goals. But for the moment, at least, they were allies.

But right now, Cinder and Adam were having difficulties remembering that.

"Your orders was to scare her, or convert her to our side," Cinder began, "Not kill her."

"Is she dead?" Adam said smugly, although Cinder could easily see the sweat beading on his skin.

"…No." Cinder admitted, her eyes glinting with fire. "But the point is, you disobeyed me." She crept closer, her hands wreathed in flames.

"I thought we had an agreement."

Adam flinched, but continued, "Belladonna is a traitor to the cause! She will never join us."

"Oh really?" Cinder said, pausing. "Why would that be?"

Adam mask locked on to her own, and Cinder had to admire the mask. It worked extremely well.

"You know why. She…" A pause, was he getting emotional? "Killed three of our best men. My friends!"

He shot up, chair forgotten. "Not a single one of my men would hesitate to kill her on sight! You want her to join?" He snorted, "I'd have a better time making the Schnee spawn convert."

Cinder was silent for a moment. Adam glared at her, before picking up his chair and sitting back down. The room was still, no sound beyond the two criminal's breathing.

Eventually, Cinder spoke, "Very well. I'm reassigning you. Torchwick…" A small smile flickered across her face, "…needs more men. You'll provide those men, and assist as necessary."

Adam's lips pressed themselves into a hard line, but he nodded. Torchwick hated him, and he hated Torchwick, but the thief was a professional. He'd keep his feelings out of the job.

Cinder opened the door, and the sounds of hundreds of White Fang members came to life.

"I have some arrangements to attend to." She said, and then walked away.

He half considered asking his men where she went, but he knew it would be a waste of time.

It always was.


	11. Set into motion

Shortly after Qrow's mini interrogation, Blake left for the library, claiming she had to go forge her note from the White Fang. True, that was what she ended up doing, but it was far from the real reason she left.

Yang's eyes, trailing her from the moment they could. It hurt her, and she knew it hurt Yang, but Blake couldn't face her yet. Maybe it should have been the other way around, but running away was what she always did.

Always.

The library was nearly empty by now. The clock read seven, so it was getting later than most students would study. Team JNPR was there, Jaune stuck in a book, Pyrrha subtly throwing hints about questions at him. Nora and Ren were, somewhat surprisingly, studying peacefully, with only the occasional comment from the orange haired girl at his side.

She sat down at one of the computers, launched up a word processor, and started to type. Half-forgotten memories of time spent writing reports in the White Fang slowly floated upwards, and she tried to remember certain details of formatting and font.

Her plan was simple. Fake a report, attach a note stating what it meant, and forward it to Qrow. It wasn't too hard, the Fang didn't have very strict rules regarding these things, but…

But things had changed here. Her memories were of a world different from her current one. For all she knew, the Fang had created some specific format, and Ozpin would be breaking down their door and demanding answers.

She let out a loud sigh, lowering her head to the keyboard. Why did she think this was a good idea? She began to feel a headache building, and she slowly cradled it. She needed sleep, not this!

Slowly, agonizingly, she started to type once more. Falling upon an old habit she gained learning how to hunt, (Animals, not Grimm) she stopped thinking about what she was doing. She focused on her movements, the soft hum of the keyboard as it registered her fingers.

Slowly, steadily, a page grew in front of her. Before long, or at least before she actually had to acknowledge its existence, there was a vaguely correct looking document in front of her. The information was all there, the only issue was whether or not it was believable.

A thought came to her, and she quickly saved the document, closed the program, and opened the file's data in a program she found when she was younger. Millions of odd symbols and letters filled the screen. Blake had… no clue what any of them did, but she quickly deleted a large chunk of the letters, hoping it would have the effect she wanted.

Sure enough, when the doc was open again, it looked partially corrupted. A few tweaks to ensure the names got through, and voila, a perfect faked document.

A quick message later, and her job was done for the night. She checked the time.

8:34.

Yang would still be up, everyone would still be up. Her work was done, but she wished it wasn't.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Blake jumped, reaching for a weapon that wasn't there. The chair was kicked backwards, and she cringed at the disturbingly loud screech it made.

The desk barely shook. Apparently they built these things _tough._

"Nora!" Blake shouted, her pounding heart returning to normal speeds. "Sorry, you surprised me."

Nora beamed. "It's okay! I do it all the time to Ren!"

"It's true."

"By the way, have we met?" She tilted her head, "Because I kinda sorta recognise you, but I don't think I actually _know_ you, so I don't know your name and—"

"Blake," She interrupted, her hand shooting out. Nora grabbed it, shook hard enough to rattle her teeth.

"Nora! Although you already knew that! And this," She gestured towards the rest of her team. "Is my team! Ren—"

"—Pyrrha and Jaune, right." Blake smiled softly, "You're the girl Ruby was having so much trouble talking to."

"Um, yes," Pyrrha said, blushing. "That is me." She looked around, elbowed Jaune in the side.

"Hm?" He said, before his eyes locked on to her. "Oh! Hi!" He got up, grabbed her hand.

"Sorry, I was—" He coughed, "I was, um, distracted by your wonderful…eyes?"

Wow, now she knew how Weiss felt. Just… how to make him stop?

"Okay…" She said, slowly creeping away from the boy. Maybe if she made him think girls were creeped out by that, he wouldn't do it.

Then again, last time it took a dance, a few hundred Grimm, and Pyrrha to knock that habit off…

"So… whatcha doing here?" Nora asked, leaning over a chair.

"Just some school work," Blake answered. It was technically true, seeing as Qrow was a teacher…

"Oh, okay." Nora tilted her head, "Is that it though? Cause it seems like there's something else."

"Well, there isn't, so I'll just head back to my dorm and sleep." Blake said, turning around and speed walking out the door. Before she could leave however, Nora had somehow gotten in front of her.

"Ah ah ah! You aren't leaving until you start talking!"

"Nora—"

"No Ren! There is something wrong, and we must assist our friend in resolving it!"

Jaune got up and quickly pulled Nora away, telling her "Sorry." He started some speech on personal space, and was quickly, albeit quietly, joined by Ren.

Blake began to leave, and was nearly out the door when Pyrrha said, "Is everything okay?"

She turned to face her. "Yes. Why wouldn't it be?"

"You seem troubled."

Blake grabbed the door frame. "It's nothing, just…" _A psychopath wants me dead, I should be dead, I yelled at my best friend, she lied to me._

"Some issues with my team." She said instead, "It really is nothing. Don't let me interrupt your…" She actually stopped and looked at what they were doing. Jaune's book wasn't one of their textbooks, rather it was fiction, some fantasy tale she barely remembered reading when she was younger.

"We're not doing all that much. Really, do you want to talk?" Pyrrha asked, pulling out a chair.

Blake let out a breath, and for a moment she was tempted. Pyrrha was a friend, a good one, and she knew she could trust her. She helped her, and never judged her on her race. She was kind, cared about everyone, was always so confident, had red hair…

No, talking about anything with her would be a bad idea. So Blake shook her head and told her she was fine, said goodnight, and walked off towards her room.

It was getting late anyways.

Jaune eye's trailed Blake until she left. Immediately afterwards, Pyrrha turned to him.

"Somethings not right." She said, "I don't know her that well, but there was something…"

He nodded. "I get it." He frowned, and glanced over at Nora and Ren. "Now that I think about it, I think I've seen that look in her eyes before."

"Really?" Pyrrha asked.

"My granddad, after the war." He explained, happy to have something he could teach his teammate. "You'd ask him these questions about, well, anything, and sometimes I just saw him…" He paused, struggling to think of the right words. "Shut down."

Pyrrha sighed, and glanced at the empty door. "What can we do?"

"Um…" Jaune scratched the back of his head. "I don't know."

"Oh." She said, "What did you do with your grandfather?"

"He has Alzheimer's."

"Oh. I'm sorry!" Pyrrha closed her eyes, and cradled her head in her arms. "I'm terrible at this."

Jaune grabbed her shoulders. "No! It's okay! Alright? You didn't know."

"Thanks Jaune." They both smiled, "I'm just not really used to… well, this." She gestured towards the four of them.

"Well, I'm not very used to fighting." He said, laughing slightly, before he turned back towards the door.

"He used to say that he liked spending time with us, so… maybe let's just try being there?" He coughed, "I mean, if they want to tell us, we should show that we trust them, right?"

"Right." Pyrrha yawned, "Although I believe it's time we retired for the night, don't you?"

"Yeah, sure. Just…" He pulled out his book. "One more chapter!"

* * *

It was nearly nine when Yang heard Blake slowly open the door and creep in. She didn't dare move, afraid that she'd scare away her partner and rob her of any chance of sleep. Ruby and Weiss had both long since fallen into the sandman's grasp, leaving her alone to totally not sulk.

She was trying to sleep, but all Yang could do was run through her actions the past few days, and wonder about Blake's. Her own actions the past few days had not, admittedly, been the most well thought out.

The subject of her thoughts had quickly gotten changed, and quietly slid into her bed. Yang strained her ears, listening to her partners breathing. She didn't fall asleep.

If all else fails, they could still bond over mutual insomnia.

Slowly, Yang eased herself out of her bed. The frame creaked, but there was otherwise no noise. She landed with a muffled thud, and before Blake could react she jumped into her bed.

They were going to talk, even if Yang had to tie her to the floor.

"Yang, what are you doing?" Blake asked, faking drowsiness. She rubbed her eyes, but they remained alert and focused.

"We need to talk."

Blake shook her head. "Go back to bed." She commanded, flipping over to face away from her.

Yang didn't twitch. She lied down next to Blake, her arms placed awkwardly in front of her.

"I'm sorry." She said, without any trace of her normal energy.

Blake was silent, but she turned again to face her. "What for?"

"You know what."

She sighed. Slowly, she whispered, "Yang, I get it, you didn't want to tell me, and I really shouldn't have pried, and—"

Yang covered her mouth. She shook her head, yellow hair battering Blake's face. "You didn't do anything wrong. I'm the one who screwed up, okay? I should have…" She reached out, grabbed Blake's hand.

"Blake, you're my best friend. You matter to me, as much as Ruby does. All I want to do is be there and help you, but…" She swallowed, and Blake saw small tears growing in the corner of her eyes. "But that's what you're trying to do with me. You came for me, talked to me because you wanted to help. I…I should have let you." Her eyes met Blake's, and she realised just how hard it must have been for her to say those words. How many years of staying strong for Ruby she just went against.

"But I got… I got scared." Yang continued, "You asked why I was angry, and I—I didn't know." Her voice started to shake with her words, and Blake, without conscious thought, grabbed her partners other hand. Yang didn't notice.

Yang calmed somewhat, and resumed speaking. "It's like little, random things worm into my head and stay there and…" Her grip on Blake's hands grew to an almost uncomfortable level, but she didn't dare let go. "Then I flip out and I can't _control_ myself and I hurt people. People I care about."

"Yang, no one's hurt!" Blake hurriedly whispered, "Besides, we're all huntresses, you're not going to hurt anyone!" At least not permanently, she thought.

"But what if I do?" Yang asked, "What if one day, someone says something stupid and then I hit them and they _die_ and-"

"It. Won't. Happen." Blake firmly said, "And if it does, we'll be there, right by your side."

Yang didn't respond, and Blake hoped that she'd gotten through to her.

"…What if you're the one who gets hurt?" Violet eyes met yellow, pleading and terrified at the same time. That's when Blake realised why Yang talked to her about this. If she had shown this vulnerability to Ruby, even for a second, she'd never think of Yang as the strong one again. It would kill her.

"You'd never hurt me Yang. I know that, you know that." Blake insisted. "You're not him." She had to know that. Despite what she had said, so long ago, she knew that Yang wasn't like Adam, would never be like him.

She felt an itch, as if an insect was crawling on her hand. Blake absently scratched the offending part.

"Stop that!" Yang shout-whispered, her normal smile returning. "I'm trying to be all glum over here and you're…"

Blake laughed softly, "Good! It's weird when you're all serious like this." A yawn escaped from her lips, and she was suddenly aware of just how _exhausted_ she was.

"So, you all done blaming yourself?" She asked.

Yang beamed at her, and said, "I'll try. Just…" _Help me? Don't blame me? Be there?_

"What?" _I won't go anywhere. Not anymore._

"Thank you." Yang eventually finished. Blake nodded. Why did it take her this long to do this?

Yang's eyes slowly started to close, and Blake found being pulled into sleeps hold as well. Neither of them felt any desire to move off Blake's bed. Without either one being aware, the two girls slowly began to slide together.

It reminded Yang of long ago nights spent with Ruby.

"You know what I just realised?" Blake mumbled, and Yang cracked her eyes open, just enough to make sure she wasn't talking into a pillow.

"Hm?"

She smiled, and said, "We missed classes today."

"…Glynda's going to kill us."

"Maybe." A soft breath left her lips, "Night Yang."

"Good night Blakey."

* * *

"That cannot be comfortable."

"I don't know Weiss, they look pretty happy…"

Yang cracked open her eyes to glare at whoever dared to wake her up. The early morning light made her hiss, actually hiss, and she pulled her pillow over her head. The fabric felt like silk to her surprisingly tired mind, and the very heavy blanket only made it better.

"Go away." She mumbled, tasting the cottony cotton of the pillow case. "Too comfy." And she was. It was as warm as a summer day, and she felt more relaxed than she had in weeks.

Ruby snickered. Weiss rolled her eyes and said, "It's almost eight, and we still have classes today." She looked away, and Yang could swear she was blushing.

"You're also…" She coughed, "Just a little close to Blake."

"What are you…?" Yang eyes widened, and she turned to look at her 'blanket'.

As far as she could, at any rate, since Blake's head was on her shoulder and prevented her from moving too much. Swallowing down her yelp of shock, Yang looked over her teammate. She was still asleep, soft breaths lifting strands of her hair. Her clothes were still on, thank God, but it was a small comfort. Blake had seemingly glued herself to her partner, not a single atom of air between her and Yang. Her whole body was pressed up against her, and it was a struggle for Yang to ignore how much she could feel.

"Oh, um…" Yang looked at Weiss, "This is strictly platonic."

"Right." Weiss snorted, her hands on her hips.

"It is!" Yang insisted, feeling Blake beginning to stir behind her. "We were talking, and then we got tired—."

"Talking? About what?" Ruby asked, her face completely innocent. But a sister knows when they've just been suckered.

"S-stuff." Both her teammates raised an eye brow. "It was nothing like that!"

"Yang?" Blake asked, slowly pushing herself upwards. Her eyes remained closed, the room still far too bright. "What's going on?"

Yang opened her mouth to speak, but Ruby beat her too it. "We're just talking about—"

"What me and B-Yang did last night." She finished, the room turning silent. "And Yang was telling you we didn't do anything—which we didn't—and then I woke up, and I was asleep."

Ruby blinked, "Um, yeah. That's, that's it exactly." She nervously laughed. "Wow, didn't realise you were listening in!"

Blake let out a breath. "I…I don't think I was." Quickly she turned so that her back was to Yang and held up four fingers. "Yang, how many fingers am I holding up?"

Yang started to twist around, but Blake elbowed her in the stomach. (The matching pain in her own torso was ignored) She opened her mouth to protest, but Yang seemingly thought better of it and responded.

"Four."

She held up one.

"One."

Five.

"F-five." There was a tremor to Yang's voice now. Blake curled her thumb and pointer into a zero.

"…You're making a circle."

Blake turned around and faced the rest of her team. Weiss had her mouth covered with her hand, and sat down on her bed. Her face was pale, and she was staring at her. Ruby seemed to have almost frozen, before she tentatively reached out and poked Blake on the nose.

"Did you feel that Yang?" She asked, her voice small in the dorm room.

Yang swallowed down a mouth full of spit. "Yeah."

"…Okay." She said, her voice echoing. Yang tried to look at her sister, but she was seeing double. It was like a bad 3-D movie without glasses, or two translucent photographs overlaid on top of each other. Gradually, however, the image stabilized into one picture, her own view. If she focused for a few brief seconds, she could still easily see what her partner was viewing.

She became aware of the feeling of breathing twice, or something like that, in her lungs. Yang reached out a hand towards her heart, and felt both her own pulse, and the faster beat of her partner.

Blake bit down on her finger, not hard enough to draw blood, but enough that Yang can feel both the pain, and Blake's lips touching her finger. It felt almost muted however, like the hand was frozen by a dentist.

Yang looked away from Ruby, and Blake nearly followed her movements out of muscle memory that she cannot remember creating. Although struck by a brief wave of dizziness, Yang could still focus on what was in front of _her,_ at least well enough to reach out her arm and touch the bed post.

Weiss cleared her throat. "What happened? Last night, I mean." She closed her eyes and sighed, eyes glancing at their intertwined hands. "I don't care if it's embarrassing, we need information."  
Blake spoke up first, "It's like she told you; we talked." Eyeing the incredulous looks from Weiss, she groaned. "That's all we did! Really!"

"Well, I talk to people, and I don't wind up… whatever is going on with you!"

Blake got up, intent on doing _something_ to her teammate. The moment she got up however, there was a few seconds of the worst feeling of vertigo she'd ever had. She fell, letting go of Yang's hand in the process.

Just like that, it was over. The dizziness, the sensations of viewing reality through four eyes, and the warmth disappeared. The room, despite the early morning sunshine and Blake's clothes, feels colder than a refrigerator.

Ruby rushed to her side. "Blake! You okay?" She asked, slowly pulling her to her feet. Yang got up and came to her side, but stopped short of actually touching her.

"I'm fine." She growled, before wincing and apologizing, "Sorry."

Weiss grinned, her shoulders slumping into a more comfortable form. "It's quite alright. Just…" She checks the time and frowns. "Fantastic. Class begins in twenty minutes." She stares at the two. "Don't…" She pauses, uncertain of what she should say. "Don't do whatever you did last night to cause this."

Yang snorted, and rose her hand into a two-fingered salute. "Yes ma'am."

"Good." Weiss sniffed the air, "And Blake… How long have you been wearing those clothes?"

"Since…" She closed her eyes and thought back. "I last changed… yesterday morning."

Crumpling under Weiss's disapproving glare, Blake quickly moved to grab new clothes. Maybe it was nothing, but Weiss was pretty sure her hands went to Yang's drawer before they went to her own.

And she was positive she wasn't mistaking the way Blake and Yang both grinned like idiots when they brushed up against each other.

Nor did she miss the small sparks they gave off.

* * *

Torchwick was beginning to hate warehouses. It wasn't the smell of urine or fish that always seeped into the walls, nor was it really the company. The White Fang was surprisingly easy to work with for a bunch of animals.

No, it was the fact that every time his life went to hell, it was in a warehouse. He met Cinder in a warehouse, he met his first partner in a warehouse, and of course, there was that time with the undercover cops…

Today was no exception to that rule.

"Cinder sent me. You needed men?" Adam had said, his frame stiff. Of course she did, why else would he be here?

Deciding against any long interaction, he simply told him and his men to start packing boxes. No complaints, nice change of pace from his normal assistants.

Eventually everything was packed, and he and Adam had to have a sit-down and figure out what was next. Cinder had been, as always, incredibly vague with her plans and what she wanted done.

They met in an office overlooking the main floor of the warehouse. It was nearly empty, containing only a few chairs and a table. Soft moonlight flickered through the cloudy sky, providing the only illumination aside from the dirty bulb softly swinging above their heads.

"So, Cindy's pushing us together again." Torchwick began, snorting. "When is she going to learn that you're just not my type?"

Amazingly, Adam didn't rise to his taunt. "She said you had a mission. I assume you didn't need us to pack boxes."

It was true, he did have a mission for the faunus gathered below. How Cinder already knew about it…

Well, maybe it was best not to dwell on that question.

"Right you are." He pulled out a paper map. Hey, he liked the classics.

"Our employers want's more dust," He explained, "Far more than I can get knocking over corner stores. My first thought was to hit a few trains…"

"My men can get that done in their sleep." Adam boasted, his posture straightening.

"Ah, yes." Torchwick smiled, "But then I learned you were on your way, and I got a wonderful idea." He leaned back.

Adam's mask made it difficult for him to get a read, but he seemed interested. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Cindy want's dust, enough to fight an army. But if I keep doing small time hits, we're going to attract some unwanted attention."

"You mean like the Schnee's team?" Adam scoffed, "They're nothing."

Torchwick scowled, and leaned forward. "Don't get cocky, bull-boy. Those four hit way above their weight level. Besides, they aren't the only Grimm in the forest."

Adam crossed his arms. "So then what's your plan?"

"It's simple," Torchwick explained. "Instead of grabbing the dust in transport, we hit the mines." He pointed at a circle on the map. "You ride in, fight off the robots or whatever they've got, and then declare yourself a savior of all the poor, misunderstood faunus workers."

Adam nodded. He seemed to be following along so far, or perhaps he simply liked the idea of actually doing what he joined the White Fang to do.

Surprisingly, he did start to argue. "Will that work? I can't imagine the government will allow us to control that much dust without a fight."

Torchwick grinned, and leaned back in his chair. "That's the beautiful part. Before we do any of this, we'll film everything. Then we send it into the world, everyone gets all up in arms, and tada! No one can touch us without the public losing it!"

Adam snorted, "You really think anyone will care enough? People know about the conditions, and they do nothing!" He was yelling by the end, his feeling on the issue seeping through despite his attempts to control it.

"A fair point," He conceded, "But the thing is, they'll _pretend_ to care. They have to." He frowned slightly, "They all want you ground beneath their feet, yet not one of them will admit it." His tone was surprisingly serious, and Adam wondered if he had stumbled across something new about the man in front of him. Something he wasn't supposed to see.

Torchwick sighed, and he got up. "See who you can get in there with a camera. This mine," He pointed towards a circled dot on the map, "Has a guard rotation in a month, and if my contact comes through, we'll have five hours with only robots to deal with." He started to walk away, noticeably leaning on his cane.

For a moment, he was worried Adam would ask him if there was something wrong. Friends they were not, but it wouldn't be the first time an 'ally' had showed concern over his capabilities. But the faunus was silent, and Torchwick was able to quickly limp away, towards the office that he had converted into his sleeping quarters.

He pulled open the door, took two steps inside, and collapsed onto his cot. Even with the relatively soft surface, his left hip briefly felt like it was on fire, burned by magma or the sun itself.

With a sharp hiss, he pulled himself over to a small freezer. He opened it, slowly, everything slowly, and pulled out an ice pack. He lied back down and set it on.

Turned out Blondie ripped a few muscles in her assault. He hadn't noticed at the time, but once he got back here he nearly collapsed on the door step. It was only thanks to Neo that he didn't get nabbed by some overweight security guard. Perhaps he should have gone to the hospital, but his medical records weren't up to date, and he really didn't feel like straightening them out with the good policemen.

The pain receded, and he felt his eyes begin to droop.

It had been a reminder, he later realised. He'd been doing this, running around, fighting huntsmen for nearly twenty-five years now. When he was younger, an injury like this wouldn't even slow him down, but now…

Well, warning received. He would be fine, of course, aura would make sure he recovered at full fighting capacity, but he was forced to slow down. He couldn't keep knocking up dust shops and risk running into more fights, so now he was going to go for the source, and maybe the bad PR would keep the police off his back.

And once this mess was over, he was going to retire. Maybe buy a house on some island somewhere, and a few thousand robots to stave off the Grimm. He was getting too old for this line of work. Hell, if he got really board, he could always take up one of the many job offers he'd gotten from mob bosses over the years.

…Assuming he survived this.

* * *

Taiyang hated swamps.

He hated, hated, _hated_ swamps with an unholy passion. Everything he owned got wet, and it never dried. The plants made it nearly impossible to spot threats, the ground was never stable, and he didn't care what anyone said, _the mosquitoes were Grimm and wanted him dead._

"How do you _do_ this Qrow?" He asked, apparently forgetting that he was alone. He glanced down at himself, "And why didn't I think to grab some different clothes?"

Sighing, he continued to trudge forward. Three days in this mud hole had turned up nothing so far. Nothing about who killed Amber, or what she had been doing in the last few days before she died.

Luckily, a few kids told him there was something out here in the swamp. They didn't know what exactly, or where it was, but it was a lead. The first he'd found in two days.

So onward he trudged, sloping through waist high water and the sticky remnants of wildlife. The moon, at least, was full, and the night was well lit. But the mosquitoes, the mosquitoes just never quit!

Suddenly his foot was caught on something in the water. He stumbled, but caught himself before he got a mouthful of swamp juice. He turned, puzzled. It wasn't the first time he'd hit a root, but it was the first time it moved with him. He carefully reached down, his hand finding some scrap of cloth. He pulled it up.

It was a tent. Looked cheap, the kind meant more for sleeping in someone's backyard than actual camping in the wild. The poles and the string were tangled up, and the local wildlife had decided to leave a message.

In itself, the tent didn't say much. But maybe…

He got out of the water, pulled apart the strings. Turning the tent inside out, he searched for a tag, a barcode, something to go off.

There was nothing. Whoever owned this tent had removed it, or it was destroyed during it's time in the drink. But he still found a brand name and a model number, stitched into the fabric in such a way as to be unmovable.

It wasn't much, and it was unlikely it belonged to his suspect, but if he had a name he might be able to compare financial records. Wouldn't stand up in court, but it's not like Ozpin worried about that.

With a sigh Taiyang got up. Scanning the horizon, he started walking towards the CCT tower. This far out in Mistral, getting a signal was nearly impossible. He'd have to move closer to be able to send his report.

Because unlike some people, he actually talks to the people he works for.

He didn't think the tent would actually tell him anything, but screw it, CCT means people, and people meant showers. Glorious showers!

Taiyang stepped out of the water onto a grassy field. He can hear a quiet buzz of animal activity rustling underneath him. A cold, biting breeze causes him to shiver slightly. The ground squelches while he walks, and he can still feel the leftovers of his time in the swamp sticking to the ground and pulling up dirt.

The CCT grew closer, and his scroll dinged. He's got a connection again. More dings sounded out from the device, and he pulled it out. Most are normal spam or ads, but Ozpin's left a few. He opened it up. It's only a few words, fits what he knows about the man.

 _Taiyang  
You're mission has been cancelled. The intel you've been searching for has been located, and we're consolidating our resources. Return to the school at once. _

_Ozpin._

Well. How about that.

Sayonara swamp.


	12. Interlude-Starting the investigation

Two days ago, the Mistral embassy was an almost forgotten building. Most official business was done digitally, to reduce the risk of transportation. In the eyes of the public the building was little more than a large eyesore.

Today it was the hotspot for news reporters and amateur bloggers, all eager to get a few pictures of the shattered windows and fleet of police cars. Despite the city redirecting traffic, it was all but impossible for Detective Murrey to drive his car through. He honked his horn, and it seemed to draw the crowd even closer, if that was even possible.

Eventually he made it through to the crime scene, where the police tape seemed to be doing its job. He got out of his car, and turned to scowl at the crowd, ignoring the way the sun lanced through his eyes. A few younger kids visibly jumped when his gaze landed on them.

Not that he could blame them. At 6'8", he was taller than many huntsmen were, although anyone who thought he was one would be dissuaded the moment he took his trench coat off and revealed his skinny frame. Slicked back brown hair, a badge and a gun, and a layer of solid stubble completed the hardboiled detective look.

Huntsmen, no. Still intimidating? Yes.

With a snarl he turned around, and crouched under the police tape. Tossing on a pair of gloves, he opened the main doors, passing by a pile of rubble, and was hit with the pungent odor of decaying flesh. High powered camera flashes took in every inch of the room, working alongside crime scene investigators with notepads to ensure that they'd have a perfect record of the room once they left.

He walked over to body, taking care to avoid the puddle of blood surrounding it. Several photographers were taking dozens of photographs, alongside a few medical examiners discerning what they could without touching the body.

One of them, a short, reedy looking man, stood up when he noticed his approach. He stuck out his hand, before he realised his glove had just touched a dead body.

"Detective Murrey, isn't it?" He asked, putting his hand down. "I'm Doctor Favel. Nice to have you on board."

Murrey grinned, showing off his teeth. "Believe it or not, good to be here. Been too long since I've been in a city." He glanced at the body, his mouth closing into a grimace. "Although I wish it wasn't for work."

Murrey's job was investigating crimes involving huntsmen and huntress. Whether it was a murder, a robbery, or even something as simple as tax evasion, it was his job to figure out what happened, and who needed to be brought in. Apparently they thought someone who'd been through an academy (even if he never finished) would be the best choice. It wasn't always the most enjoyable work, as it often involved figuring out whether a body was killed by Grimm or something else.

Didn't really matter how many times he saw a freshly gnawed on corpse, he never got used to it.

The doctor nodded, sighing at the same time. "Don't we all? You get the reports yet?" He walked over to a table near the east wall, where most of their computers and papers were placed.

"Read it this morning." Murrey pulled off his gloves and started typing on one of the laptops. "Not much in it except for video footage and that Spice guy's—." He made quotations marks with his hands, "Interview."

Favel chuckled lightly. "Yeah, not the best guy for the job there. First responder, so he got dibs. Even before the government came in."

"The feds were here?" Favel nodded. "Damn it. I just got off a government job." He swore, before turning his attention to the screen. Favel could still hear him darkly muttering under his breath.

"Who's the victim?" He eventually asked, pulling out a small notepad.

Favel pulled out his own. "Victim's name was Jasper Mulson, thirty year old hunter from Vacuo. No family, all KIA, except for his father, currently undergoing treatment for dementia. Came here looking for work, and got one working as a security guard for this place. No outstanding records, no issues with the law, perfectly upstanding citizen." He put away the notebook. "Wrong place, wrong time for him. I don't think he was the target."

Murrey nodded, and started reading the mountain of papers in front of him. Shrugging, Doctor Favel began going through the reports from the other medical examiners. As he flipped through the pages, he occasionally caught sight of the detective, deep in thought during his search through their findings.

After a few minutes of working in silence, something caught his eye. He stopped scrolling, and read through the report a dozen times.

He coughed, drawing Favel's attention towards him. "This report, it say's we only got one blood sample. Wasn't there two victims?" He asked.

"Right, according to the cameras there was." He walked over to the computer and started scrolling through the list.

"And the military investigators did find some blood samples. But here's what happened." He said, and then opened a video. The screen showed a small plastic container, filled with blood. Judging from the shakiness it was filmed by hand, and Murrey was nearly certain he was looking at the same table he was standing at now.

"What am I—?"

"Just watch."

Suddenly, the liquid began to give off dark black flakes. The container was sealed, so they had nowhere to go, yet seconds later they were gone. Within a few minutes there was nothing left of the liquid.

His jaw hung open, and he slowly turned to the doctor.

"Is that... blood?" He asked, pointing at the screen. The doctor nodded, his face grim.

"From the second victim," He said, "It was taken from the alleyway, so it couldn't have been anyone in here." Favel closed the video, and then sighed.

Murrey shook his head, and said, "It looked like a Grimm blood sample."

"That was my first thought too," Favel admitted, "But there was no sign of a Grimm attack anywhere near this building."

Murrey nodded, and turned his gaze back to the computer screen.

"I want to see those videos again." He told Favel. "Specifically when the second victim is stabbed." Favel nodded, and opened it up.

The photo quality was better than he expected. Although it was still somewhat grainy due to how dark it was, there was no struggle to easily make out the three fighters. One male wielding shotguns, one girl with a sword/pistol thing, and…

"Adam Taurus." He growled, "Bane of my fricking existence."

Favel chuckled. "I take it you know him?"

Murrey grunted an affirmative, unwilling to go into depth.

The video continued, and he watched as the huntsman and the girl get stabbed, saw the girl run, and heard Adam's angry roar after he lost his prey.

Suddenly his eyes widened, and he went back in the footage to when Blake first escaped Adam.

"That's her semblance, isn't it?" He asked Favel, his eyes never leaving the screen.

Favel squinted at the screen, watching the black haired faunus run. "Yes? I can't see any other way she could have done that."

Murrey turned to him, and said, "But we just saw her aura run out."

Favel's jaw dropped, and then he shook his head and closed it. "No, no way. That can't be right…" He muttered, his fingers on the touchpad. He clicked the rewind button, went back to the victims last attack. Sure enough, he could make out the faunus's aura dissipate.

"That's…" He said in disbelief, "Impossible. Completely impossible! You can't use a semblance when your auras…" He stepped away from the screen, and turned to the detective. He didn't seem to be noticing the looks the other techs were giving him.

"I think," Murrey said slowly, "I should go find our other victim. Where can I find this…?" He paused, struggling to remember the name of the earlier detective. "Herb guy?"

A voice called out from behind him, "This time of day? I'd check the station. He's probably filling out paperwork."

He cranes his neck around, and said, "Thanks." Nodding at Favel, Murrey steps out of the building towards his car, noticing how the sun has begun to reach the highest part of its arc. The streets are much clearer now, the reporters apparently realising they weren't getting any information out of this place.

He opens his car and steps in. The cloth seats are hot to the touch now, and if it wasn't for his aura he would have burnt his fingers when he picked up his scroll.

"This is Detective Murrey, badge number 777980." He begins, "I need all the files we have on the Summer Rose case."


	13. I trust you

The hallways of Beacon were crowded, noisy, and smelt like gunfire and sweat, but for Blake, they were familiar. Normal.

A normality that she desperately craved right now.

Her morning qualified as one of the weirdest she'd ever experienced, and although the rest of the day had almost been boring compared to that, it was like trying to put out a wildfire with a bottle of water.

She still remembered how it felt like to be… connected to Yang, for a lack of a better word.

The thought made her pause in the hallway, her face redder than an apple. She needed a better word. Dear God, she needed a better word.

A jostle from someone turned her mobile again, and she felt her face gradually return to normal colouration.

Good thing too, since the next thing she heard was, "Hey Blake!"

"Yang," she responded, stepping off to the side of the hallway. "Hey."

Yang grinned.

"How's your day been?"

Shrugging, Blake said, "Fine, mostly. Just… you know, weird start."

Yang's smile slipped.

"Yeah, true." she said, placing her hands on her hips. She glanced down, and Blake briefly thought she had something on her shoe.

"So, um." Yang said, looking up, "Anything… happen today? I mean, weird stuff?"

Blake shook her head.

"No, not really. It was… normal."

"Okay." Yang closed her eyes and breathed out. "So um… Weiss wants to take some samples of us, and she's going to send them off tomorrow."

"DNA samples?" She crossed her arms. "That seems like a bad idea."

Yang chuckled, and waved the thought off.

"She's got enough leverage to keep them quiet."

"What, like blackmail?"

Yang glared at her.

"Leverage," she hissed, "Should at least try to keep it a secret."

"Oh, of course." Blake leaned against the wall. "'Cause we've been doing such a great job of that so far…"

Yang tilted her head, and moved beside her.

"What do you mean?"

"Well," Blake started, "I was caught on camera. There's video footage of me breaking the law."

"Hey, you've never been charged with anything—well, at least that we know of…"

"That doesn't matter!" she yelled, "What if…" she paused for a minute, and when she started talking again it was much quieter, "What if someone sees it? Someone here or, hell, Cinder?"

"Then we'll deal with it." Yang grabbed her shoulders. "Me, Ruby, Weiss, we'll deal with it. We—what's happening to my hand?"

They both looked at Yang's right, glowing hand. Blake's own aura was lit, and the two could slowly see them melding together. Yang quickly pulled her hand back, and the glow receded.

"I—I'm sorry Blake! I wasn't thinking—!"

"Yeah, you weren't." she spat, before wincing. "That was harsh, I'm sorry."

"No, no it's okay." Yang told her, and then closed her eyes.

"This… is this going to happen every time?"

"…I don't know Yang."

"Because I don't… I touch people, all the time," she explained, "I hug Ruby and you and I punch people when I fight and… If I can't do that I'll—"

"Yang, it's okay." Blake said, "Look, the world might have turned us into its personal chew toy, but I don't think it's that unfair. It might not work at all with anyone else."

"Yeah..." She pushed herself off the wall. "Yeah, you're probably right." She smirked, "I'm worried that if I get in Mercury's head I'll puke."

"Heh, fair enough."

Yang drew out a large breath, and then continued, "Seriously, don't worry about the video. The police don't like to realise that stuff if they don't have too. There's enough complaints about how much they violate privacy as is."

Moments after she finished saying this, Blake felt something buzzing against her skin. Rummaging in her pockets, she soon fished out her scroll, buzzing with a small notification.

"Oh hell…"

"What is it?" Yang asked, leaning over to look at her scroll.

Her eyes never leaving the device, Blake responded, "It's something I got to let me know if something about the White Fang, or as of yesterday, the embassy shows up in the news."

Yang nodded.

"And that means…?" Suddenly her eyes widened. "Ooooh crap."

They both glanced around at the rest of the students around them, many already having their scrolls out and watching the video.

Blake's thumb hovered over the play button; she hated the idea of not knowing what it said, not to mention how suspicious it would look, but that didn't change the fact that she really did not want to see it again.

She wanted to enjoy her last moments of anonymity.

"Still think the world has a sense of fairness?"

Without answering her partner, Blake quickly walked down the hallway, mumbling out half-hearted apologies. Initially the crowd proved pliable, and she was able to make significant time, but soon sidesteps became rooted horror at what they were witnessing.

Yang was following her, thankfully deciding to stay quiet. The seriousness of the situation had quickly become apparent to her, so she just followed her lead.

It almost looked like the two of them would escape before anything went wrong when they both heard Cardin next to them saying, "I told you, we should put those animals back where they belong. Can't believe we have so many of them here."

Blake willed herself to keep going, to ignore what he'd said. It was surprisingly difficult. He hadn't said it too her, and she'd heard things far more offensive from him before, yet all she wanted to do was walk over and break both his legs.

Caught up in her own thoughts, Blake didn't notice Yang stomp over to the boy until she said, "You want to repeat that to my face?"

She turned around, and saw Yang less than an inch away from Cardin, her fingers digging into the palms of her hand.

"No, no no no…" she whispered, pushing her way through the crowd. Most were still watching their scrolls, but it wouldn't be long before that changed.

"What's your problem?" Cardin demanded, his posse slowly circling around the two. "I wasn't even talking to you!"

"What's my problem?" Yang grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him down.

"My problem is that you're a racist asshole, so you either apologize, or I smash your teeth in, got me?!" she snarled, eyes blood red.

Nearly everyone's attention had shifted to the 'fight'. Ironically, they were too focused on Yang to notice the faunus slipping through.

"You want me to apologize? Huh? That's what you want?" Cardin spat back, pushing himself back up. "To animals? What, should I go tell the cow I'm sorry for eating hamburgers?"

His team laughed, and Blake could hear a few chuckles around her, but the hallway was mostly silent. This was turning into something few of them had much experience with.

"You son of a—" Yang reared her arm back, chambering a round into her suddenly deployed gauntlets. Before she could throw a punch, Blake reached her and grabbed her arm.

"Yang! Drop it!" she told her, then snarled, "He's just a bully. Save it for who matters."

Slowly, her partner's rapid breath and pulse faded. She was still angry, anyone could see that, but she wasn't about to kill anyone.

Blake threw a glare at Cardin, who was smirking like he'd won something.

"Come on," she said, leading Yang out through a gap in the crowd.

They had nearly made it out when Cardin decided to press his luck one more time.

"Yeah, go on! Get a collar on that thing! Fil—"

Whatever he was saying ended the moment the punch connected with his nose. She heard his nose snap—clearly he had forgotten to activate his aura—and he fell to the ground in a heap, clutching his face and moaning in pain.

Blake didn't even realise what just happened, until she heard a surprisingly timid voice say, "Blake?"

She whipped her head around, and found herself facing Yang. Her weapons were armed and ready, but her hands were lowered. Anger had given way to concern.

It was then when Blake felt the sticky, hot liquid seeping between her fingers. She brought her hand closer to her, close enough the see the blood running across her hand and down her arm.

She hit him.

"I…I…" She stammered, backing away from Cardin's slowly rising form. "I didn't mean to…"

Blake turned and ran, the crowd parting easily for the bloodied figure. Yang started to reach out, started to run, but before she could leave, Cardin opened his mouth. Again.

"Dold you. Stubid savage monsder."

Yang's eyes flared stoplight red, and she wheeled around to face him. His aura was active now, working diligently to patch up his nose.

BANG!

She slammed her fist into the top of his skull, firing a shot with her punch. His head smashed into the floor, creating a crater more than three times its size. There was no moaning this time, no movement, just a steadily rising pool of blood.

Yang didn't notice, or didn't care, and stomped away. Anyone too close got to feel firsthand the effects of her fire, wincing at the sudden heat. Breaking through the haze of rage, she briefly wondered if she had been hit by a missile recently and didn't remember it.

That thought provided the crack her rational mind needed to regain control, and the consequences of her actions crashed into her like a freight train.

"Oh crap." She whispered, and then rushed to his side. The hole his head was lying in was rapidly filling with blood, far more than a broken nose should have caused.

"You still alive?" Yang quickly pulled him out of the puddle. The voices of her old teachers reminded her of his probable neck injury, but she figured that drowning in his own blood was a good enough reason to risk it.

"Please be breathing…" She laid her hand over his mouth, and felt him breathe small, short breaths.

Wordlessly, she placed her hands on his chest, right above his heart. She willed him to get up,

"Come on… come on!" she screamed hoarsely, "Get up!"

Someone grabbed her shoulder and tried to pull her away.

"No!" She threw it off. "I need to—"

"What? Finish the job?!"

"I—"

It wasn't working. His forehead was bowed in, the outline of her fist clearly visible on his skin. Blood flowed from the cracks in spurts, soaking her clothes straight to her skin.

Yang stared at her arms, turned red with his blood, in mute horror.

"I—I didn't mean too..."

* * *

Weiss had often heard that the Beacon medical center, while equipped with only six or seven beds, could perform any medical operation from an appendectomy to brain surgery.

Something that she could now say she had firsthand evidence to prove.

"Is he…?" Ruby asked, seated just next to her. They were both in an adjoining room, nearby a large glass window. Apparently it was meant for the higher grades, if they wished to specialize in some form of field surgery.

Weiss seriously doubted anyone would wish to see this.

"I don't know," she answered, "I don't have the legal right and, well, there's not really anyone to ask."

Both flinched when they heard a bone saw spin up, and Ruby, and herself, turned green as they heard it tear through his skull.

"They wouldn't be doing that if it wasn't serious."

Weiss didn't answer.

The grinding continued for several minutes, until Weiss asked, "Is Yang coming back?"

Ruby shook her head. "I think she's looking for Blake."

She nearly slapped herself. Blake's involvement in the incident, while it did not spread to the duo as quickly, had still been circulating the school for hours by now. Both had heard it after leaving class, yet Weiss had still managed to forget.

"Is she okay?"

"Blake's fine. She texted me earlier. It said…" She pulled out her scroll, "Don't worry about me, I'm just staying away from the school right now. Tell Yang thanks for being there."

"That's… good."

"At least we know she's okay?" Ruby said, trying to sound optimistic.

Weiss glanced one last time at the OR, regretted it immediately, and sat down next to Ruby.

"Try not to worry too much. I know how it feels to be on this side of the glass."

Ruby snorted. "Yeah, I guess so, huh?" She craned her neck to look through the window.

"It's just… I don't like him. I mean, I really don't," she began, "He's… he's a great, big, stupid bully, but he didn't deserve this!"

"I understand—"  
"But then that makes me feel even worse, 'cause now it sounds like Yang's some horrible person when, really, she's not! We both know that!" She was looking at her now, her arms flailing about.

"I get it Ruby, I real—"

"What are we doing, Weiss?"

The question stopped her cold.

"What do you mean?" she asked, honestly confused.

"I mean…" Ruby looked away, and she crossed her arms.

"We came back, and we had this great big plan, we had goals and ideas. Now… now there's an innocent person dead, another guy hurt, stuff just keeps on piling up, and we're not any closer to stopping Cinder or saving Pyrrha and Penny or anything!"

"We've accomplished things." Weiss argued.

"Like what? The papers we got?" Ruby spat, "What did those have on them? Did you actually find anything?"

Weiss scowled, but couldn't respond. Honestly, she hadn't found much. Cinder's name, or at least an alias that looked like was hers had shown up in the papers, but without a reference, it was as useful as a disconnected telephone.

"See? That's it exactly. We change nothing, and people…" she paused, and placed her hand on the glass.

"People get hurt."

Acting on an impulse she'd swear to have never felt before, Weiss clenched Ruby's hand within her own. The relative coolness shocked Ruby into letting out a gasp as she turned around.

"Um, Weiss?" she said, after trying to tug her arm away, "I, uh, can't really move my hand."

"What I'm about to tell you can never be repeated." Weiss said, squeezing her fingers tighter.

"Tell me what?"

"Promise me!" Weiss demanded, her grip tightening to a painful level.

"Ah, ah okay! Okay, I promise!" Ruby yielded, her free hand immediately rubbing her other to restore circulation.

"Good." Weiss said, before closing her eyes and drawing out a breath.

"When I was younger, and I do mean young, like six or seven, my father was in… discussions, with the board members over a decision he wished to make."

"This isn't some story about steaming rolling your way through life, is it?"

"Hush. Anyways, the board didn't want to go through with his plan. They viewed it as too risky, too dangerous. But my father disagreed."

"So he did it anyways."

"So he simply reminded the board members who was in charge, and three days later, the Schnee dust company announced their first actual store."

Ruby blinked.

"Those haven't been around forever?"

Weiss shook her head, her hair batting Ruby's nose.

"No, for years all we did was supply smaller businesses. The company's never sold it direct to anyone but the military before."

"Oh. That's…neat?"

"The point is," Weiss continued, "Is that he knew what he was doing was for the best." She sighed, and opened her eyes.

"You still think stopping Cinder is right?" she asked, blue meeting silver.

"Of course it is. She's a murderer." Ruby crossed her arms, "Why would you even—"

"Then don't get discouraged just because things haven't been going well." Weiss smiled. "You're the one who said we couldn't quit just because we're scared."

"Heh, true." Ruby rested her head on the back of her chair.

"Hey Weiss?"

"Yes Ruby?"

"…Thank you."

They continued to sit like that for a long time, trying to ignore the sounds from behind them. When the door swung open, Weiss quickly pulled her hand away from Ruby's and stood up.

"Excuse me, sir—" she asked, before catching sight of the woman coming through.

"Pardon, Ma'am, can you tell us how he's doing?"

She raised an eyebrow.

"Are you his team?"

"Well, no," Weiss admitted, "But his team was removed earlier, so I figured I could tell them how he's doing?"

"His team was the vomit boys, right?"

"Correct."

The doctor let out a sigh, and after peeling off her gloves, said, "He's got… well, he's bleeding inside his head, and that's creating pressure. We've relieved it, but…"

"What? What else is there?"

Looking away, the doctor slowly took in a breath.

"Damnit, I don't deal with the families…"

"We're not—"

"I know, I know." She rolled her eyes. "Inside joke. Point is, he's… well, nothings for sure until we get him to an actual hospital. But… I'd find his team."

"We'll go find them." Weiss turned to Ruby, "Do you know where their dorm is?"

"Yeah."

She had almost left when a hand gripped her shoulder.

"Do it fast."

* * *

Meanwhile, several kilometers away, Blake sat in a small chair in a café's balcony seating, sipping a small tea. In her hands was also a small, well-worn book, a brown leather cover adorned with a golden picture of a young girl.

The book, the tea, even the balcony was all an attempt to distract the young huntress from the events that she had experienced a mere hour ago.

So far, it proved unsuccessful.

Sighing, Blake set the book down and flagged a waiter. Her tea had long since grown cold and flavourless, and she could recite her book from memory by this point.

A tall woman, her nose the black of a dog, came up to her and grabbed her unfinished beverage. Blake handed her a few lien, enough to pay her bill and to act as a tip.

"Thank you," she said, smiling. "Um, Miss…?"

"Blake."

"Thank you Miss Blake." Her eyes traveled to her two ears.

"Be careful tonight, alright? There's been a bit of a kerfuffle between, well, us and the humans."

"Isn't there always?" Blake muttered, pushing in her chair. "Thanks for the warning."

"Hey, us faunus have to stick together, right?"

The words, as innocuous as they likely were, struck a chord within Blake's heart. Memories of thousands of armed faunus, all sticking together as they fought against her, and her friends, nestled in their well-worn grooves and refused to leave her.

Without a noise, Blake quickly left the café, pausing only briefly to check for any high speed cars as she crossed the street. She wasn't really sure where she was going, only that she needed to get as far away as possible from that waiter.

Dark looks followed her as she walked, along with quiet insults that anyone else would never have caught. Eventually the crowd thinned, and Blake started to feel like she could actually breathe again.

She had arrived at a park, full of bright green trees and a dark blue lake. There was a few people still walking through, dog-walkers and parents, but for the most part it was nearly empty.

Near the lake was a bench. It seemed fairly clean; Blake couldn't spot any bird droppings or spilt juice, so she sat down and stared into the murky depths in front of her.

Eventually she leaned back, and closed her eyes.

The more she thought about what happened in that hallway, the more she remembered of it. Now she could call up the sound his nose made as it crunched under her fingers, the way it felt to strike out and hit him like she did.

It was horrifying.

Blake had never, ever lost control like that. Not once, even when dealing with Torchwick or Grimm. It was one of the things you learned when training, even with her spotty records.

You can't lose control, you're too powerful, too dangerous to ever risk it. Even Yang—baring a clearly staged incident—had never really hurt anyone that wasn't trying to kill her.

But she did. She lost it, and hurt him. Yes, he was an arrogant, pathetic excuse for a human being, but she still struck out.

Blake opened her eyes and dug her fingernails into the palm of her hand.

Stop it, she told herself, you're just thinking in circles. Yes, she wasn't proud of what she'd done, but it wasn't like he was acting all that great either. Soon enough this would all blow over, and things would go back to normal.

Sighing, Blake got off her bench and walked out of the park. The sun had begun to set, and soon it would night. Bad day aside, she really didn't want to spend the night in some ratty hotel.

She was passing by an alley when she heard, "Get off of me!"

"Not until you start talking!"

The voices came from her right, down the dark, narrow alley. Her hands went to her back to grab her sword, but there was nothing there. She left it at school.

Of course, she had her scroll, but by the time the locker got here, whatever was happening would already have happened.

Blake bit out a sharp sigh.

What happened to the days when she was lucky?

Crouching down and shimming along the wall, she gave a silent thanks that the shadows were large enough to provide her some cover. The alley itself added to this, being dirty, dark, and smelling like a boy's washroom after three years of operation.

"Gah!" Blake heard someone yell, "Son of a—she bit me!"

"Grab her!"

Just as she was rounding the corner, the victim—a young girl, short, with blonde hair and… wings?

Under her arms and connected to her sides was skin, far darker than her normal coloration. Her shirts had only the thinnest threads holding the fabric together, and no sleeves.

Blake was stunned by the sight. Faunus with wings were not exactly unheard of, but they were certainly far rarer than ears or a tail. The closest she had ever seen was a young man with feathers down his arms.

"Alright, now that we've got you still…" one of the boys, the tallest, said, "I think you might want to start answering our questions."

"Go to hell." she spat, before launching a glob of spittle at his face. It splattered just above his eye, and stayed there.

"Very funny," he growled, wiping his forehead with the length of his arm.

Suddenly, his hand went to her neck, and she let out an involuntary whimper.

"You know this won't help you, right?" he whispered, "I'm the only guy right now who can keep you alive, so you better cooperate."

Blake wanted to move in, try and protect the women, but she stayed out of sight. Something about the situation felt… off.

Any choice in the matter was removed when her scroll dinged with an incoming text. The group, four in total, minus the girl, turned to her.

Tall boy—the one performing the interrogation—was the first to speak up, "You have got to be kidding me."

Blake stepped forward, trying to look as intimidating as she could. Although she was outnumbered and weaponless, none of her opponents looked to have training comparable to hers. Odds were they knew how to throw a punch, if the girl's bruises were any indication.

"This is none of your business!" Tall boy yelled, "Leave!"

Crossing her arms and attempting to look angry, Blake couldn't help but snort.

"You do realise I'm a huntress? This is literally my job," she said slowly, like one would talk to a young child.

He snorted. "Yeah, and I'm a millionaire."

Blake glared at the boy, inwardly grinning at his shaking hands.

"I won't ask twice; let her go." she demanded, lifting her arms into a boxing stance. Although she had spent most of her time training with her swords, she still knew how to throw a punch.

"Make us," One of the younger boys mocked, earning him an elbow from Tall Boy.

"Do you want her to kill us all?" He whispered, only briefly taking his eyes off her.

The movement of his arm, on the other hand, proved to be his downfall. The winged girl got her arm free and swung at him with a wild punch. Drops of spit flew off and landed on the nearby walls, followed shortly by the boy himself when the girl lifted herself off the ground to kick him with both legs.

Blake, muttering curses under her breath, leapt into the fray. Her elbow connected with someone's stomach, hard enough for her to feel his breath wash over her skin.

Gripping his hair hard enough to turn her knuckles white, Blake rammed the young boy into the wall with a loud CRACK! Thankfully for him and her conscious, he appeared only dazed. A well planted foot to the jaw later, and while he was still conscious, he wouldn't be moving anytime soon.

A much louder noise drew her attention to the other girl, and Blake found her initial assessment of her changing rapidly.

In what had to be the oddest fighting style she'd ever seen—somehow beating out Flynt's and Neon's—the girl kept both her arms tucked in to her sides, looking like she was afraid of getting germs on her hands.

Her feet and legs, however, were moving fast enough to blur, connecting with her opponents legs, leaping off, landing on the wall and rocketing herself back into the fight.

It was honestly a dizzying spectacle. The boys, all continued to rush her, either out of some misplaced macho fever, or in the vain hope that they could once again overwhelm her through numbers.

One of them, somehow deciding that she was a decent target, had picked up a pipe and began to swing it.

Blake stopped the pipe with her arm, the metal bending around her aura. The kid—who couldn't be any older than twelve—looked at the pipe, looked at her, and then promptly realised who he was fighting and decided to run for his life.

After Tall Boy got thrown into a wall by the girl, he seemed to agree.

"Forget it! Let's go!" He pointed at her as he and his cronies ran off, "You'll regret this!"

The alley now clear of their presence, Blake got a chance to take stock of her injures. Although she never took a hit, her knuckles were sore and lightly bruised. She wiggled her fingers several times, ensuring that there was no permanent damage done.

"You okay?" she asked the girl, pulling her to her feet.

She grinned and shook her hand vigorously.

"Yeah! Yeah I'm good!" she said, her voice high pitched and airy. "Thank you so much, you probably saved my life and I can't express how much I—"

"Don't worry about it," Blake said quickly, "Seriously, it's nothing."

The girl's mouth dropped, and her eyes bugged out.

"Nothing? They coulda killed me, or raped me or—"

Blake shrugged. Whoever those people were, they didn't look like killers or rapists.

The girl put her hands on her hips and stared at the ground, while biting her lip.

"Well," she said after a moment, "I disagree with that. Come on, I know a place that's got the best donuts you'll ever taste." She grabbed her arms and started to pull her out of the alley.

"Wait!" Blake said, ripping her arms away, "I'm not going to go have coffee with you, I don't even know your name!"

She giggled.

"No, no you wouldn't, would you?" she said, "I'm Violacciocca."

Blake blinked.

"Um… nice to meet you… Viola-choka? Socka?"

She groaned, and slapped her forehead.

"Just… call me Viola."

"Alright… Viola. It's nice to meet you."

"And you too. Now, come on…" She cupped her ear. "What's yours?"

Blake let out a sigh, and closed her eyes.

"It's Blake," she eventually said.

"Blake, Blake Blake Blakeity Blake." Viola cupped her chin.

"I like it!"

"Good to know."

"Well then Blake." Viola grabbed her hands, much more gentle this time.

"I do believe I promised you a donut?"

* * *

Viola led her to a nearby café, far smaller and more homely than the one she had left a scant hour ago. Blake expressed some concern over how close they were to where she got jumped, but Viola laughed it off.

"The owners here are pretty hard-core," she explained, "NAobody want to mess with them."

AShe had bought her a large box of donuts, along with two steaming cups of coffee. Although Blake wasn't a huge fan of the bitter tasting beverage, she sipped at it anyways.

"So…" Blake began, setting down her coffee, "What brings you to Vale?"

"Hm? Oh, I'm a reporter. See?" She pulled out a press badge.

"Cool. What are you writing about?" Blake asked, grabbing a donut from the box.

"Oh, I don't write stuff, I take pictures." She pulled out a small camera from her pocket. "Say cheese!"

Blake raised an arm to block the shot, but before she could cover her face the flash went off, nearly blinding her.

"I'm sorry!" She quickly put the camera away. "I didn't realise—I forget to turn the flash off, I'm so sorry—!"

"Forget it," Blake said, blinking rapidly as her vision returned.

Viola looked like she was about to say something, but the ringing of the door cut her off.

Blake turned to look at whoever had entered. It was a man and a young girl, who both ordered a hot chocolate.

When she turned back, Viola had put the camera away.

"You said you were a huntress, right?" She asked, sipping her coffee.

Blake took a moment to respond as she forced her own brew down.

"In training," she replied, "I'Am going to Beacon. Which reminds me…" S he glanced at the clock hanging just above the cashier.

"I should be heading back."

She moved to get up, but Viola grabbed her arm and all but forced her to sit.

"It's only eight!" she said, "And there is no way I'm finishing all these by myself." S he gestured to the still nearly full box.

"…Fine." Blake acquiesced, "But I really can't stay much longer."

"That's okay. I just want to get to know you a bit more."

"Alright, ask away." Blake picked up a donut and took a bite out of it. True to Viola's word, the frosted treat was one of the best she had ever tasted, although she felt like it was not _the_ best.

"…So you're a cat faunus?" she asked curiously, despite the rhetorical nature of such a question.

Blake wiggled her ears as an answer.

"Right, right, sorry."

She pinched the bridge of her nose.

Blake could just barely hear her whisper, "That was the stupidest…" before she moved her hand.

"That means you've got good hearing, right?"

Swallowing her donut, Blake said, "Yeah, I do. It's how I found you."

Viola blinked several times.

"Wow, that's—that's really cool." She lifted her arms, spreading out her wings to their full length. "All I've got are these dumb things."

"I don't think I've ever seen wings before."

"Yeah, they're really rare. Mine are bat."

"Bats are cool."

Viola snorted, and lowered her arms.

"Yeah, but I got the least useful part," she said, drinking more of her coffee.

"I wish I had the ears or something; hell, I'd take the fur. At least it would keep me warmer than these do."

"What do they have to do with temperature?" Blake asked. In response, Viola got up and came to her side, nearly jamming a part of her wing in her face.

"Do you see the veins?"

"Um, sure, along with your pores."

"Oh, sorry." Not looking apologetic in the slightest, Viola moved back to her seat.

"Anyways, all that blood is moving through my wings, but they're really thin and really big, so all the heat just seeps out," she explained, " Plus, if I get hurt there, I'll probably bleed to death in seconds."

"Ouch."

"Yeah. Nice in the summers though, 'cause then I can spread them out and I'm in heaven." A blissful look spread over her face.

"Yeah, I guess it would…" Blake said, before looking at the clock.

"Why are you out this late anyways?" Viola asked, "I'm glad that you were, but you seem pretty worried about the time."

Blake drew out a sigh, clasping her hands together.

"At the school, I… There was this boy."

"Ah…" Viola's eyebrows wiggled. "What happen, he get you pregnant?"

"What? No! No!" Blake sputtered, "God, that's—that's gross!"

"Hey, don't knock the sausage," Viola said, somehow managing to keep a straight face until after she finished. Then she burst into laughter at Blake's complete and utter shock.

"I don't mean it like that—I like boys! Really!" Blake tried to protest even as Viola kept laughing. Her body shook with each breath, snorts coming as fast as the giggles. Before long she had to set her mug down to avoid spilling it.

"Oh my god, I'm sorry, it's just… your face," she said after her laughs had subsided, "You looked like I just told you that you had cancer or something."

"Yeah, glad you enjoyed yourself," Blake muttered.

"So, uh, what did happen?"

It took her a few minutes to respond.

"Long story short: he called me some rude names, I flipped, hit him, and then left."

Viola's expression grew uncomfortably dark.

"Human?"

Blake nodded.

"Got what he deserved then," she said, "Arrogant pricks, always thinking they can do whatever the hell they want."

Blake's grip tightened on her coffee mug, and she leaned forward with a scowl etched on her lips.

"Do you have a problem with humans?" she asked, glaring Viola dead-straight in the eye.

She scoffed. "Who doesn't? They attack us, they abuse us, and they won't hire us. Why wouldn't I hate humans?"

The words themselves expressed a sentiment Blake shared not too long ago. Humans were the enemy, they suppressed her, hated her, and would kill her if they got the chance.

Everyone she knew growing up had this viewpoint, and while growing up in the White Fang probably skewed the statistics, she hadn't exactly heard many contrasting opinions.

Then she got out, and realised not only was that wrong, but it was the other way around as well. Perhaps less prevalent—irony to end all irony—but still a commonly held belief.

"I've met a lot of humans," Blake began, sipping slowly, "And yeah, there's some that are pricks, but there's at least some that aren't."

Viola crossed her arms.

"Really then? Name one," she said.

Blake smirked. A part of her had been waiting to say this for the whole week.

"Weiss Schnee."

The effect her words had on her was immediate and obvious. Her arms fell to her sides, her face slipped into a look of shock, and she actually seemed to shrink in her chair.

"You know her?!" she shrieked. "How in the flipping… How?"

"It's a long story."

"Yeah, I guess it would be, wouldn't it?!"

Viola leaned back in her chair, a thoughtful look on her face.

"You're something else, you know that?"

Blake didn't respond, instead checking the time.

"Well, I really need to get moving." She pushed in her chair, catching sight of the still nearly full box of donuts.

"Sorry about the food. It's great! I'm just not hungry right now."

Viola waved her arm.

"Don't worry about it." tapped her chin.

"Hey, Beacon puts you in a team, right?" she asked.

"Yes…?"

Viola picked up the box of donuts and handed it to her.

"Here. Someone should probably get to enjoy these."

Blake grinned as she took the box. Many of the donuts were chocolate flavoured, something that would defiantly appeal to her team leader.

"Thank you," she told Viola.

"Hey, I'm just paying back the person who saved my life."

Turning to leave, Blake was almost out the door when Viola shouted, "Wait a minute!"

Blake turned around to see her franticily writing something on a piece of paper.

"Here," she said, sticking the slip into her pocket, "I'd—I really want to see you again, so there's my number."

"Um, thanks."

Viola looked away, a blush spreading across her skin.

"And ah…" she said.

Then she kissed her cheek.

"See you later?" she asked once she had pulled away. It took Blake nearly a minute to respond.

"Um, sure, I'll… call. I will call about it."

Viola giggled, and patted her on the shoulder.

Then, with a second kiss, she left. Blake continued to stand there, absently raising a hand to brush against the skin that she had touched.

Apparently, she liked girls.

* * *

Moments after leaving the café, Viola headed down the side alley. Once she was far enough away that Blake couldn't hear her—quite a walk—she pulled out her scroll and tapped in a familiar number.

"Come on, come on, pick up." She paced back and forth, kicking at a stone. The sun had long since set, and the night air leeched at her exposed skin.

"You've reached 555-498-3892, please leave a message."

Letting out a sigh, Viola started to speak.

"Hey sweetheart, it's me. I'm sorry I'm late, I got held up by some idiots."

A police siren in the distance made her jump.

"Look," she continued, "A girl named Blake 'saved' me. I took her out and bought her some food, and I think she has a way to Weiss Schnee. I know it's not my goal, but I thought I'd let you know.

"Anyhow, I'm on my way over now, so I'll see you in a few minutes."

She moved to put her phone away, but paused. Then she brought it back up.

"And please start answering your phone. I'm getting tired of always talking to a machine."

She put her scroll away, and slipped into the cover of the night.


	14. Should I?

The moment he stepped into the gym, he could hear the noise. The sound of chains rattling, of flesh meeting leather, and her short breathes as Yang pounded away at the well-used bag.

She's was throwing everything she's had into her blows. Despite the late hour, he can tell that she's managed to nearly tear the thing down. Not noticing, or more likely not caring, her blows grew wilder, more frantic. Carefully controlled jabs and hooks gave way to flailing arms and unchecked aggression.

Then she seemed to notice, grew angrier, and desperately tried to recapture her initial control.

It doesn't work.

That's when he walked up to her and grabbed the bag. Neither of them spoke; Yang continued to pulverise her battered target, and he kept it from flying off.

Her blows stopped, and she leaned against the bag. "What do you want, Qrow?"

"Answers, a trip to Ozpin's office, a beer." He shrugged. "You choose."

She let out a harsh laugh. "Well, I'm underage, and I don't have any answers, so I guess I'll be going to the principal's office."

She started punching again, and Qrow nearly lost his footing as she relentlessly hammered on the bag.

In between blows she said, "I'll just walk up to his office so he can tell me what a disappointment I am. How he expected _better_ of me!"

"Yang—"

"And you know what? I'll agree! I am a disappointment!" Her fist tore through the leather skin of the bag, spilling sand all over the floor.

Qrow shook his head. "A guy insulted your friend, and you reacted. Yeah, it was harsh, but you're not training to be dancers. You're huntresses, warriors."

"Some warrior I am," Yang muttered, pulling the deflating bag off the hook and carrying it to the garbage.

"Try a heavier bag," Qrow suggested.

Yang scoffed. "That one was 200 pounds. Do they even make heavier bags?"

"They did when I was here."

Yang shot him a look, but searched for, and found a 300 pound bag. She hefted it over her shoulder and brought it over to him, where they managed to lift it on to the hook. The screws holding it in place groaned as the pressure increased, but they held.

"It's just…" Yang said while punching the new bag. Despite what felt like an inch of metal and its weight, Qrow struggled to keep it in place.

"You, and every other teacher I've had, have always told me to never, ever lose control." She threw a right hook, one hard enough to nearly make him lost his grip.

"And I did. I lost control, and now a guy's in the hospital. So don't try and tell me it's okay, or it's not my fault!" she said, cutting off his attempted rebuttal. "Because it is my fault! It's my responsibility, and I fucked it up!"

Her next hit tore through the bag like it was wet toilet paper, and everything past her elbow disappeared into its dark abyss. Yang's rapid pants sounded more like someone who had just run a mile, and as she slowly pulled her arm out, he saw her eyes had turned red sometime in her little speech.

"How many of these have you went through?" he asked, eyeing her hands. Her knuckles had turned purple and yellow, and seemed to be on the verge of bleeding.

Yang let out a huff. "I don't know, nine? Ten?" She closed her eyes. "Why does it matter?"

"Because they cost a few hundred Lien each. Come on," He put a hand on her shoulder, noticing the way she stiffened at the contact. "Let's get you to bed."

She threw his arm off. "I'm not tired. Besides, didn't you want me to see Ozpin?"

"He can wait," Qrow said, "And it's nearly midnight. You'll be tired as soon as you stop wrecking things."

Yang crossed her arms and huffed, briefly reminding him of her younger days, and her legendary temper tantrums. The thought brings a smile to his lips.

It takes him a while to begin speaking again, both preferring the silence. "So why did you hit him?"

Yang sighed. Her eyes closed, and it was clearly a struggle for her to speak. "He… he said some things about Blake. I flipped, and… well, you know how it ended."

He nodded. It was what he heard from the other students involved.

"And what made you turn around?" he asked.

Yang's response was quiet, and Qrow had to strain his ears to hear, "I... I got scared. I realised what I did, and I freaked, and so I tried to h-help him."

"So, you made a mistake, instantly regretted it, and did everything in your power to fix it." He chuckled and shook his head. "Clearly, you're a horrible person."

She slugged him in the shoulder, forgetting that she just tore apart a metal punching bag. "Would you mind taking this seriously? I could have killed him!"

Rubbing his arm and wincing at the future bruise, Qrow said, "Yeah, and you should feel bad about that."

"...No kidding."

"I'm just saying that you're only seventeen," he continued, noting to himself to put ice on his arm later. Yang had gotten strong.

"You've still got all those _wonderful_ hormones running around in your blood, making you do dumb things you'll regret for the rest of your life."

"Gee, you're the best at pep talks," Yang mumbled, before she stepped into the dorm building. She could hear faint snores coming from all around her, along with the whispers of the few people still awake.

"Look, the point is, you handled your mistake as best as you could." He chuckled. "If it were me, he'd be missing some important… equipment."

By now, the two had reached RWBY's dorm room. Yang shot him a look before she opened the door and stepped inside. Blake was reading on her bed, and got up nearly the second she entered.

."Look, Qrow," Yang said, whispering to Blake, "Wait."

"I know that you're trying to help, or not make me feel as bad, or something, but…" She looked away.

Just before Qrow could say anything, she said, "Do you really think his parents are going to care that I had an excuse, or that he was an ass?"

"Yang—"

"Do you? Would you? If someone killed Ruby, or me but they had an 'excuse' or 'they were only kids,' would you be telling them that they handled it well?"

With that, she slammed the door shut. He could hear Blake talking to her, although he could not make out the words. Light spilled into the hallway from students who'd heard the commotion and wanted to see what was going on.

Shooting a glare at anyone who he saw, Qrow made his way out of the building, Yang's words echoing in his brain. The words themselves didn't concern him, but the fact that Yang herself said them, and with that much conviction, honestly scared him.

They weren't the words of a teenager, especially not one that once told him she wanted to be a huntress because she enjoyed fighting and adventure. It sounded more like an old soldier who'd lost someone.

His eyes wandered around the courtyard until they came to her window. Yang was still visible, but seemed to be talking with Blake. The ethereal glow from a reading light made her slowly growing smile visible to him, even this far away. Her head tilted down, and her whole body shook as she seemingly laughed.

He knew something was wrong with Blake and Weiss. The few times he'd actually managed to talk to them, they looked and sounded… different. Similar enough that he doubted they were compromised, (yet) so he assumed it was stress.

Now…

Now he found himself standing outside Oz's tower. His feet, running on some autopilot had deposited him here, forgetting that he was missing the whole reason he was here.

"Screw it," he muttered, before walking into the building and going up the elevator.

If he was going to ignore orders, he might as well tell the guy.

* * *

"Yes, I understand completely… No, I can't… He's been moved to… Sir, if you'd… Sir?" Qrow heard as he exited the elevator. Ozpin was on the phone, hand on his chair and staring at the city.

"Oh, Mrs.… Yes, it's Vale Medical Centre, intensive care ward, room 819…Thank you miss," he finished, then hung up. He sighed, and then turned to him.

"Qrow," he said, "Where's Yang?"

"Asleep. Hopefully." He sat down and put his feet on his desk, crossing his arms behind his back. "I figured she needed the sleep more than she needs the interrogation right now."

Ozpin groaned, and rubbed his forehead. "Qrow, this isn't another bar tab. Mr. Winchesters parents wish to press charges, criminal charges. Yang could very likely be facing jail time."

"No she won't." Qrow smirked. "We both know you won't let that happen."

"I may not have a choice." Sitting down, Ozpin started scrolling through his files. "Did you have anything important to say, or did you not know what else to do?"

Qrow frowned at the bitterness in his words, but otherwise didn't react. "I talked with Yang. Seems to me this is nothing more than a bully picking the wrong target." He brought his feet to the floor and said, "Unless you happen to know more?"

In response, Ozpin leaned forward, and stared Qrow straight in the eye. The cocky attitude faded as he received a reminder of the power behind the older man.

"Tell me, Qrow. Has Yang ever in her life lost control?" he asked, enclosing a fist with his other hand. "Has she ever permanently hurt someone in a fit of rage? Said something that she would never even think during an argument? Become so angry that she went against a core element of her character?"

Qrow's eyes narrowed as he thought. He tried to remember back to every fight, every bad day Yang had ever had. He could remember screaming, violence, and swears. He knew how sloppy she could get during a fight, but…

Despite her strength, no one she fought ever came out as tenderized meat. Nor did she ever come home with blood on her hands. Yes, she got into fights, and turned so many criminals into enemies, but she had never went too far.

"She was trying to protect her friend, not herself. That's different," he argued.

"And she's never done that before?"

"…The guy's an ass."

"Be that as it may, this is not normal," Ozpin continued. "Something, or _someone_ , is distressing her, and it's beginning to affect her behavior."

Qrow narrowed his eyes and glared at the headmaster. "Someone?"

Ozpin stood up and walked over to the elevator. He punched in a few numbers, and the doors slid open.

"There is no more effective way to disable a huntress or huntsman than by attacking their emotions." He turned to Qrow. "You have a weekend without any classes; I suggest you start with the man they fought at the dust shop."

Qrow stared at Ozpin, until he suddenly chuckled and stepped into the elevator.

"Have a good weekend," Ozpin said.

Qrow gave him a two fingered salute, and then the doors closed.

* * *

A long time ago, Ruby decided she didn't want to be a police officer. It wasn't out of some lack of respect for the position, not at all! Her choice was cemented when she was young, just after mom died.

She still remembered the way she felt that day, even if the details escape her. The mind-numbing sadness, the disbelief, the anger. How the officer, a young man who looked lightly terrified of her, tried to comfort her. Told her, "I'm so sorry for your loss," and, "I hope this brings at least some closure."

No, knowing that her mother was dead didn't help. It just destroyed the last shred of hope her young self could muster.

The day would forever go down as the worst she would ever experience. The last five minutes, where she and Weiss attempted to inform team CRDL of their leader's condition, was the next runner up.

The same emotions were there, albeit muted somewhat. They were not as close as she was to her mother, and the injuries were not as severe, so they were not dealing with a death. She also supposed that it helped a little that the three students were so often mean to her closest friends, but even that could not rid her heart of the weight it gained when she saw the soul-crushing expression that each of the team members gained as Weiss described Cardin's injuries.

Mercifully, it wasn't long before they found themselves leaving CRDL's room and finding their way back to their own dorm room. Every step away Ruby took made her better and better.

"That was awful," Weiss said, letting out a sigh. She had tightly crossed her arms, seemingly trying to hug herself.

"No kidding." Ruby put a hand on Weiss's shoulder. "At least it's over?"

Weiss laughed softly, a rather dainty sound compared to Yang or Ruby's giggles. Her arms feel to her sides, and Ruby smiled at a job well done.

Her next words shook her. "I don't deserve you, or Yang, or Blake, or anyone here, really."

Ruby blinked several times. "Of course you do! We're your friends."

"But that's just it!" She stomped, wincing at the noise it made. "The day we met, I treated you like garbage! Anyone else would've given up, and I wouldn't blame them! But you…"

She sighed, and looked Ruby in the eye. "You became my friend. Not because you wanted my money or my fame, but because you actually wanted to spend time with me."

She grinned. "It's oddly refreshing."

Ruby's hand tried to supress her sudden burst of giggles. Weiss scowled at her, and rested her hands on her hips.

"I am trying to be serious here, you dolt!"

"I know! It's just…" Ruby bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from laughing. "Why wouldn't we want to be friends with you? I mean, you're smart and funny, you have an awesome weapon, can fight in stilts, you're super pretty, and—"

"You think I'm pretty?"

Ruby's eyes stretched into dinner plates. "I… said that aloud, didn't I?"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "Yes! Answer the question!"

"Um, yes! You are very pretty!" She replied quickly, a luminescent blush spreading across her face. "I mean, you're elegant and have great clothes and you're face is so… ah, I mean, you're… you're pretty."

Weiss was blushing just as hard as Ruby was now, and she was watching her feet rather than looking forward. Just as Ruby was starting to worry that she'd said something wrong, (beyond the obvious) Weiss whispered, "Thank you."

"Oh, um… you're welcome?" Ruby scratched the back of her neck.

"And for the record," Weiss lifted her head, "From a purely objective standpoint, you are also very… pretty." Somehow, her blush grew darker.

"Thanks," Ruby whispered.

Grinning, she turned to Weiss and hugged her, causing her to let out a tiny squeak.

"What do you think you're doing?" Weiss asked, her arms frozen at her sides.

"You don't 'deserve' to not have friends just because you were a jerk," Ruby replied, "You're a better person now, and that's all that matters."

Weiss didn't move or reply. "Weiss? Are you—?"

Suddenly she was in the surprisingly strong embrace of her partners arms. Her nose dug into her skin and Ruby struggled to breathe with how hard she was holding her, but she didn't say anything, and just rested her chin on Weiss's shoulder.

They both stood there for what felt like hours. Compared to Yang, Weiss felt somewhat cool. There wasn't a big glob of hair trying to choke her either, and Weiss didn't have to crouch down to reach her.

Sadly, Weiss eventually pulled away. Ruby's arms were left hanging in the air, and she nearly lost her balance.

Weiss grinned and said, "Never change, Ruby."

"Yes ma'am!" Ruby gave a two fingered salute, smirking at the older girl. "I'll wear these clothes forever!"

Weiss snorted, raising a hand to her mouth. A door opened behind them, and a rather irate looking girl poked her head out.

"Excuse me! Some of us are trying to sleep!"

"Sorry!" They both chorused. The girl harrumphed, and slammed the door shut. Voices and light began to spill into the hallway, as others wanted to know what was going on.

"We should probably get out of here," Ruby said before she grabbed Weiss's sleeve and started pulling. The students around them numbered at a dozen, and that number grew quickly.

"Wait, is that…?"

"They're friends with that blond girl, right?"

More and more people showed up, enough that the hallways started to resemble a hydraulic press. Ruby could see her dorm room door just a short distance away.

"The one that killed Cardin?"

"Yeah, the cape girl's her sister, I think."

The door was so close; Ruby could almost touch it.

"Hey! Red or Pinkie or whatever, do you know your sister's a pyscho?"

Ruby stopped, right there in the hallway. Weiss nearly tripped over her feet at the sudden change in velocity. Her head slowly twisted around to stare at whoever dared to utter that sentence.

Her target was a young woman with green hair and dark skin. For a moment, Ruby almost thought it was Emerald, arriving a few months early. She was still smirking at her, but she hadn't missed the sudden change in atmosphere.

"What? You trying to scare me or something?"

She was lucky, really. The whole situation could have turned out so much worse for her. Yang could have awoken; Weiss might've frozen her solid. So when everyone close to her was covered in rose petals, and the girl suddenly found herself missing pants, well…

Count your blessings, and all that.

Ruby rushed into the dorm room, Weiss following shortly behind. They managed to close the door just before anyone realised what happened. She locked the door, shut her eyes, and collapsed into a puddle.

"This is bad," she said, cradling her head in her arms.

"You didn't exactly make it any better. Why did you do that?" Weiss asked, keeping her voice low for the benefit of her two sleeping teammates.

"I wanted her to stop talking about Yang like that," Ruby explained. "Maybe now everyone will talk about _her_ tomorrow."

Weiss harrumphed. "I suppose it can't be any worse than today."

* * *

It was, Yang thought, a very good rendition of her, at least as far as hastily-scribbled drawings in red marker went. From a certain perspective, it could actually be flattering, as it showed her crushing people under her foot.

That it was of her crushing _kids_ and _puppies,_ as well as it being on her door, made it a tad more insulting.

Weiss stomped off, muttering about how she was going to go find a teacher.

"So…" Ruby said, "Maybe we should go get some breakfast?"

Yang sighed, and pulled out her scroll. "I can't. I have to go see Ozpin about what happened yesterday."

Ruby visibly deflated as she spoke. Yang winced, but there wasn't really much she could do.

Suddenly gaining an idea, Yang crouched down to Ruby's eye level, and said, "Hey, Blakey brought some donuts home last night. Why don't you share them with Weiss?"

"I can't take your donuts…"

Blake stepped up. "They're mine, and I say you can eat them."

Ruby sighed. "Fine." She walked to the door and opened it. Just before stepping inside, she turned around.

"Yang, whatever happens, we're not going anywhere, alright?" she told her, an odd strength in her eyes.

Yang nodded. "Of course I do." She stood up, a great big grin on her face. "Go, eat, drink, and be merry!"

Ruby smiled, and closed the door. Immediately Yang's smile faded, replaced by the kind of frown that death row inmates often sport.

Blake stepped closer, still not touching her partner, but the intent was clear.

Yang sighed. "I guess I'm off to see the wizard."

"Want some company?" Blake asked. "A walk sounds nice right now."

Yang gave a rueful smile. "Sure, if you don't mind being seen with a pariah."

Blake shrugged, and the two walked down the hallway. This early in the morning, few people had actually awoken. Yang could hear the rare whisper from behind closed doors, and there was a few armed students heading towards the yard for some early practice, but they were the exceptions.

They were at the door when Yang asked, "What did you do yesterday?"

Blake's hand was on the door, but she hesitated before she pushed it open. Yang wondered why, until she looked at her face.

"Are you….blushing?"

"No," Blake mumbled, trying to turn away, but the damage was already done.

"Ha! What happened, did you run into Sun?"

"N-no, it was… someone else…"

Yang's eyebrows rose. "So something did happen?"

Blake opened the door and started walking. She was moving fast enough that Yang actually struggled to keep up.

"Nothing _happened,_ Yang. There was this girl, she was in danger and I stepped in, she bought me donuts—"

" Wait, she bought the donuts?" Yang narrowed her eyes. "You know, it's kind of rude to regift something from a date."

"It wasn't a date!" Blake insisted, "She was just—just very thankful that I saved her, and wanted to repay me. That's it," she said as Yang began to snicker.

"Yeah, sure thing Prince Charming."

Blake growled. "How did Ruby survive you for fifteen years?"

"Sugar, corn syrup, and more sugar."

"Of course. That makes sense."

Yang laughed, hard enough that she bent over and had to stop. When she looked up, she could see Blake, despite the embarrassing nature of their conversation, was smiling.

"So, um." Yang stood up, and started moving. "In all seriousness, is she interested like that, or…?"

Her blush, although it had never truly gone away, resurfaced with a passion. Yang didn't think it was possible for a face to resemble a tomato that much.

"Yeah, she's…" Her hand went to her cheek. "Interested."

Yang smirked. "Ah, the good old 'kiss and run' routine. So I take it she's cute?"

Blake slapped her. "Yang!"

"What? It's an honest question!"

Blake rolled her eyes and snorted. "Yes, she's… very cute, and she's got wings, so…"

"Wings? Like, real wings?" Yang asked.

"Sort of, it's like…" Blake paused as she tried to think of a something similar. "Have you ever seen a flying squirrel? It's kind of like that, but not as big."

Yang tilted her head. "…Yeah, I think I'm following. So defiantly a faunus then?"

Blake nodded. "Rare type too. I've never seen wings before."

"Huh, well, snuggling would be interesting…"

"I will shoot you."

"Do you have her number?" Yang asked.

Blake pulled out a note from her pocket. "Yeah, right here."

"Call her, make plans." Yang turned away. "You deserve to have someone outside of this mess."

Blake pulled out her scroll, and despite her words, Yang felt the sudden urge to grab the device out of her hands and smash it. The sheer power behind this desire startled her. Why should she care who Blake spends her time with?

It was an understandable wish after all, as she herself had said; Blake needed someone who wasn't fighting against a supervillain.

Perhaps that was it. Cinder had proven herself well informed and well connected. Most worrying, she commanded the largest terror group Remnant had ever seen, composed of nothing but _faunus._

It was racial profiling and she knew it, but Yang thought it justified. The four of them had clearly offended fate in some way, and turning Blake's new friend into foe seemed right up its alley.

Blake—perhaps echoing her thoughts—had yet to punch in the last few numbers when Yang grabbed her arm. The sudden contact, and it's ever present sparks immediately drew her attention to her.

"Can we trust her?" she asked.

Blake's scowl, and the rapid removal of her hand, told her everything.

She dropped her head. "I know how that sounded, but come on; we've got so many enemies at this point that we can't ignore the chance."

Blake's continued glare nearly made her try to apologize, but Yang knew she had to stay firm. Blake could be angry all she wanted, but as long as she was safe, Yang didn't care.

"If it means anything, I'd be asking the same question if she was a human."

Blake sighed. "I think I can trust her, but I don't know her well enough yet." She snorted. "I don't even know her last name."

Yang may not have had as much dating experience as the rumor mills painted her as having, but she was pretty sure that knowing your date's last name was something you should ask before they start buying you stuff.

"That's actually why I was going to meet up with her again," Blake continued, "I figured that if anything went wrong, I could probably fight my way out."

"What if she brings backup?" Yang asked. Visions of giant robots and heavily armed terrorists filled her mind. Honestly, she didn't expect anything like that, but the image wouldn't go away.

"She's a reporter, Yang, not a general." Blake crossed her arms and sighed. "Fine, since you're so worried, how about you come with?

Yang immediately perked up at the idea. It was perfect, she could find out first hand if she could trust this new girl, and if anything went wrong, well, she and Blake could handle it, easy.

"Yeah, sure, I can do that."

By now, the two had reached the tower. This early in the morning, its shadow was cast upon them, and Yang found herself squinting in order to see Blake in front of her. Her partner was still somewhat annoyed with her, but that faded as she looked up the towers walls.

"Hey," Yang tried to place her hand on her shoulder, but remembered at the last moment the consequences.

"I know. You're just trying to help." Blake smiled at her. "At least we're talking about it."

As memories of her actions over the previous week came back, Yang tried to apologize. Before she could get a word out, Blake laid a finger on her lips.

"Forget it. I don't care anymore, and neither should you." She jerked her head towards the tower. "Go on. I'll let you know what Viola says."

Yang nodded, gave Blake a smile, and bounded up the steps. Just before she entered the building, she turned.

"So that's her name. Viola," she said, as if tasting the word. "Nice name."

Then she threw open the doors, and entered the building.

* * *

The one good thing about the long elevator ride up the tower was that it lacked elevator music. Aside from the gentle hum the machinery gave off as it worked, Yang was left alone to her thoughts.

Perhaps that wasn't really the best for her, considering where her thoughts were taking her. She tried to distract herself with plans of what she was going to do about Viola later that day, but she kept returning to Cardin's skull cracking under fist, and her desperate attempts to heal him.

On second thought, maybe music would be a good idea.

The elevator came to a gentle halt. She heard a ding, and then the door slid open. Yang stepped over the line separating the office from the elevator, and stared at Ozpin and Glynda, both waiting to pass judgement.

Glynda was standing by Ozpin's desk, her face set in that ever familiar cross between anger and disappointment. She was gripping her wand thingy hard enough to turn her knuckles white, but there was still a noticeable looseness in her shoulders and knees.

For whatever reason, she was ready to fight.

Ozpin, on the other hand, had the opposite air. He was sitting in his chair, coffee in hand, sipping it like she wasn't there. His cane was off to the side, ignored. Hge looked over her with a critical eye, but gave no hints as to his opinion.

"Miss Xiao Long." He said, taking a slow sip of his drink. "I hope the morning has treated you well?"

"Yes sir."

He smiled. Yang was reminded of a crocodile.

A chair in front of the desk with pulled forward by Glynda.

"Please," Ozpin said, setting his cup down. "Sit."

She complied, casting nervous glances at the younger (Probably) teacher. Yang had never actually been on the receiving end of Ozpin or Glynda's wraith, and if she was being completely honest, she didn't want to be.

Ozpin began his interrogation. "I understand there was an altercation between you and Mr. Winchester yesterday, shortly after classes."

He glanced at Glynda, who gave a short nod. "I also understand that, as a result of these actions, Mr. Winchester is currently in the hospital, with several dozen pins in his skull." He leaned forward. "There is a very real chance that he will never return to school."

The words hit her like a sledgehammer, but she would be lying if she said she hadn't been expecting them. She remembered the wounds, remembered the way his skull contorted. To be honest, she was amazed he was still alive.

"So I have to ask you, as headmaster, and as a huntsman, why?" He looked her in her eyes, and Yang knew, without a sliver of doubt, that her next words would decide her fate.

She took in a deep breath, and said, "I want to say that I did it because he was insulting my teammate. I want to say that I did it because he was a jerk, and that he deserved it.

"But I know that's not true. Whoever he is, whatever he's done, he didn't deserve what I did to him." She blinked, choking back tears. "So whatever punishment you want to give me, I'll take it. I deserve it. Just… just give me tonight. There's some stuff I need to get done, and then I'll go to jail, or whatever you decide."

The words hurt to say, like every syllable was a bullet passing through her heart. She knew that by doing this, she was letting down her team. They'd be a man short, and although there was some poetic justice considering CRDL's fate, it would matter for far more than marks.

Ozpin leaned back. "You truly believe this? You truly believe that you deserve to be punished as a criminal?"

Yang nodded. To her surprise, Glynda's harsh expression softened.

"I see," gOzpin said. "Because I believe otherwise."

"What?" Yang yelled as she got to her feet and threw her chair back. Glynda almost restrained her, but a hand from Ozpin stopped her.

"I nearly killed him!" she screamed, ignorant of the tears streaming down her face. "I lost control, and I fucked up, and I won't forget it! Alright?! So please, just… tell me what I need to do…"

She fell back onto her chair, her shoulders sagging. Her hands hung at her sides, and when she looked up, the energy and intensity that defined her were gone. Whatever strength had been keeping her going was spent. But she didn't show it in tears, no, she just… went quiet.

Ozpin and Glynda shared a glance.

"Miss Xiao Long, I have been looking at your records from Signal." He pulled out a folder and gently placed in front of her. "Quite an impressive one at that, you'll make a fine huntress."

"What does this have to do with Cardin?"

He raised a finger. "More significantly, I looked at your behavior. I attempted to discern whether you had a history of this kind of violence. Do you know what I found?"

Yang lifted her head.

"No, you haven't. For all of your temper, never once has a fight turned into something more dangerous." He leaned back. "So while you believe that you are a criminal that must be punished, I see a young girl who made a mistake."

For the first time in the conversation, Glynda spoke up. "Everyone in this school is well armed and dangerous. Expecting there to never be incidents such as this is foolish." She glared at her. "This is the only amnesty we will offer you. If this happens again…"

"Glynda," Ozpin warned. It was brief, but for a single moment, Yang saw a hint of the huntsman underneath the teacher.

Glynda turned her glare on him, but complied.

"So you're just gonna let me go?" Yang asked, crossing her arms. The idea of getting off scot-free somehow managed to make her feel both free and sick at the same time.

"No, you will be facing consequences." Ozpin opened the file in front of her and flipped it to the back. Yang saw a picture of a women, brown hair, green eyes, with text under it saying, "Dr. Ivory Stet"

Yang read the page, once, twice, and then the third time she simply stared at it, as if she could somehow make it burst into flames.

"You want me to see an anger management counselor?" she asked, incredulous.

Ozpin nodded. "Dr. Stet is very experienced with huntresses and huntsmen. There is no one else who I would rather trust."

She threw the folder on the desk. "Forget it."

Glynda stepped forward, her rage in full swing. "Miss Xiao Long, may I remind you that we, by all rights, should arrest you and have you stand trial? This is a serious matter, and—"  
Ozpin held up a hand, and her mouth shut. His next words were to Glynda, but his eyes never left Yang. "If she does not wish to go, then there is little point in forcing her. As it stands, I believe it is best for all if we simply move past this incident." He gestured towards the door. "You may leave."

Yang nodded, and stood up. She felt drained, but at least it was over. Glynda was still giving her the stink eye as she left, but she tried not to notice.

She was almost at the door when Ozpin said, "I suppose you would be aware of what transpired at the Mistral embassy earlier this week?"

Yang turned to face him, casting a neutral expression. It was a rusty skill, and she was well aware of how unlikely it was to work, but she couldn't think of anything else to do.  
"Yeah? What about it?"

Ozpin's face betrayed nothing as he said, "I've heard rumors that a girl with a red cloak and a cat-eared faunus were involved." A small, almost imperceptible smirk grew on his lips. "Do you know about that?"

"…No."

"Of course not." He pressed a button on his desk, and suddenly the elevator was open. "Your first session is on Monday, after classes. I hope to see you then."

At first Yang did nothing, but then she sighed. "Do I need to bring anything?"

Ozpin shook his head.

"Fine." She entered the elevator and pressed the button. The door slid shut on Ozpin's face, and then the only thing she could see was her own.

"That went well," she whispered, then shook her head. All she wanted to do right now was go to her bed and sleep for the next month, but there was still her meeting with Blake's new friend. She didn't like how little she knew about the girl.

Despite that, she couldn't help but feel that she was overreacting. No matter how good a fighter she was, there was two of them. Unless she brought an army, there wasn't much they couldn't handle.

Right?

* * *

Viola walked up to the door with a spring in her step. Her face was stuck in the expression of joy, and anyone who saw her would immediately start looking for an equally struck man or woman.

Of course, they wouldn't be completely wrong, but her joy was mostly due to returning home. A long, hard journey such as the one she had made would turn any traveler homesick, and hers was far worse than most.

She stopped at the door, looked around her for any intrusions, and then rapped on its metal surface five times. She waited, and then knocked thrice. A small slit near eye level opened up, and she could just barely see two beady eyes staring at her.

"Password?" He, or she, asked.

"Reclaim our destiny."

The slit closed, and she heard locks clicking before the door swung open. He, defiantly a he, had a gun in his hand, but put it away the moment he saw her face.

"Madam." He stated simply.

She patted his arm and slid past him. The door locked behind her, and she let out a small breath. Although she didn't advertise her status, and she didn't have any warrants out for her, there was never a safe moment when a member of the White Fang was out in public.

Especially considering who she was.

Coming around the first corner, she saw Adam slaving over a map in the main room of the warehouse. Despite her training, she couldn't help but let a giddy smile show on her lips, and she picked up speed.

Adam turned before she reached him, and although his face remained expressionless, she knew he was glad to see her.

"Miss me?" she asked, stopping just before she collided.

"Did you get the job done?" he grunted, turning to face the map again.

"Sure did." She pulled out a few dozen photos. "Got enough here to map the whole sector." She was referring to Mountain Glenn, where she had spent the last few weeks mapping out areas and scouting for future problems. The photos would be combined with a computer, and used to create maps for the foot soldiers.

"Good," was all Adam gave in response.

Viola scowled, but said sweetly, "Did you get my message?"

"What message?"

She rolled her eyes. "Why do I bother?" she muttered. "Did you even notice I was late?"

"Of course I did. I just wasn't worried."

Smiling, she wrapped her arms around his torso. "Well, it's a good thing you know me so well, isn't it?"

"So what's the message?"

She frowned, but said, "I got jumped by some idiot boys, and I thought I was going to have to start, well, you know, but then this girl came out of nowhere and took a couple of them down." She sat on the table, forcing Adam to look at her directly.

"I take it she was a faunus?"

Viola nodded. "Of course. She said her name was Blake, and that she, somehow, knew... Adam?"

He was staring at her, mouth slowly creeping open. She couldn't see past the mask, but she knew him well enough to recognise shock.

"Did you say Blake?" He leaned in close to her, all his attention focused on her.

"Yeah, why?"

"Cat faunus, black hair, sword?"

Viola blinked several times. "I-I don't know about the sword, but yeah, she had the ears and hair."

Adam growled, and then slammed the table. " _She's_ Belladonna, Blake's her first name."

Viola felt her mouth drop open, her hands involuntarily curling into fists. She'd heard of Belladonna before, of course. Anyone in the White Fang knew what she did. The very idea that she had been within spitting distance of her...

"Does she know?" Adam asked, growling.

"No, of course not. She doesn't even know my real name." She paused, then added, "I'm sorry I didn't kill her."

Adam sighed. "No, don't be. Our... _benefactor,"_ he spat the word like it was some kind of poison, "Wants her alive."

Viola rolled her eyes. Adam knew her thoughts on _her,_ but neither of them could do much about it.

She jumped off the table and squeezed his hand. Adam continued to glare at nothing, but she knew that he was glad for the touch.

Her phone's sudden buzz broke the contact, and had her scrambling to pull it out. She stared at the screen.

"It's an unknown number. Should I answer it?" she asked. Scrolls were never a secure form of conversation, so whoever it was had to be from her cover. That could mean nothing, or it could be really, really bad.

Adam gave her a nod, so she tapped the screen and held it up to her ear. "Hello?"

"Hey Viola."

"Hey Blake!" She pulled the phone down and covered the microphone. "It's her!"

"Keep talking!"

She nodded, and brought the scroll back up. "Oh, sorry. I lost connection for a minute, what did you say?"

"I was just wondering... Do you want to meet up? Somewhere, for dinner or something?" She sounded nervous, but Viola couldn't tell if it was nerves from the question, or something else.

"Um..." Adam gave her a nod. "Sure! Do you mind if I choose the place?"

"That's fine."

She smiled. "Alright, just let me find a place..."

Adam leaned in and whispered in her ear.

"Do you know the Rosefeld restaurant?"

"I can find it."

"Great! Meet you there!"

Blake said her goodbyes, and hung set the phone down on the table and turned to Adam.

"Take who and what you need," he told her. "Try to keep her alive, but if you can't, kill her."

She gave him a salute, and then, before anyone could see, planted a chaste kiss on his lips.

"I won't be long." She smirked. "One cat versus a few dozen soldiers? How hard can it be?"

She tried to walk away, but he grabbed her shoulder before she could. His fingernails dug into her skin.

"Do not underestimate her," he warned. "She's dangerous."

She threw off his arm. "So am I," she said, then walked off to gather the men.

The hunt was on.


	15. Meeting new friends

Blake stepped onto the grassy plain, her eyes checking the roofs and trees for the glint of a sniper. The sun was beginning to set, and a cool breeze had picked up. She considered wearing a jacket, but none of hers was very comfortable.

That was a lie. They were the most comfortable thing she had ever worn. However, every time she touched them, she felt like she was wearing someone else's clothes. They fit nice, but were almost gaudy in their design, zippers off to the side, a large, nearly glowing decal plastered to the front.

She dearly hoped that Yang had chosen them, because she wasn't certain what to do if _she_ had done it.

Shaking her head, she looked up to see Weiss standing in the middle of the field, back straight, sword out. There was a soft glow from in front of her, but Blake couldn't see what it was.

She came up behind her, not bothering to keep quiet. Weiss turned and gave her a quick look, but didn't speak. Her focus remained almost entirely on whatever she was doing.

Blake leaned over her shoulder and saw a peculiar looking glyph. It was pulsating, seemingly, in time with Weiss's heart.

A few minutes later, Weiss's concentration broke.

"I thought you would have been gone by now," she said, flicking her sword to the ground.

"Soon, Yang had something she wanted to do." Blake glanced at her sword. "What exactly were you doing here?"

Weiss sighed, and stabbed her sword into the ground. She had a thin sheen of sweat, and her shoes were streaked with green.

"Did you see the battle between Qrow and my sister?" she asked.

"I saw a video of it, why?"

"Do you remember my sister summoning those birds?"

"…Yes?"

"I'm _trying_ to do that, but it's not…" She picked up her sword and pointed it forwards. The glyph reappeared, smaller and seemingly more unstable. "Working!"

"Why are you trying to do your sisters semblance?" Blake asked, crossing her arms. It was beginning to grow colder.

"The Schnee family all have…" Her grip on her weapon grew tighter. "The same or very close to the same, semblance. We're… special in that way."

Blake walked over to her side and put a hand on her shoulder. The sparks that occurred whenever she and Yang touched didn't happen, but the way Weiss's shoulders relaxed seemed far too extreme for a simple touch.

"I think I've heard of that before," she said. "Although it was less… complimentary."

WeissWeiss frowned, and turned her head. "What do you mean?"

"Just a saying that I heard in the White Fang. 'Fight one Schnee, you've fought them all.'" The bitterness in her voice surprised even herself, and she found herself fighting to keep a growl from getting out.

Weiss, surprisingly, smiled. "It's not completely wrong. We do tend to have similar fighting styles." She let out a sigh. "Which is why I'm trying to get this to _work."_

Blake stared at the odd glyph on the ground, noting the swords cutting through to the edge. The harder she looked the more odd details she could see. This glyph was vastly different from Weiss's regular types, the only commonality seemingly being a small snow flake near the center.

"I did it once," Weiss said suddenly, breaking Blake out of her observations. "During the battle, I managed to create a sword."

A wistful smile came onto her lips. "I cut a Paladin into pieces with it."

Blake felt her jaw drop. She remembered how much damage the robot they fought had taken, and that was a prototype.

Weiss noticed her surprise, and smirked.

Blake cleared her throat. "Made any progress?"

Weiss sighed. "Some. I'm closer than I was before. I can… feel something." She spread out both her hands, staring at them like they contained the secrets she was looking for.

"Maybe try thinking about what you want it to do, instead of just trying to create it," Blake suggested.

Weiss gave her a look. "I suppose I could… are you speaking from experience?"

"Of a sort. It's how I make my copy's do anything beyond standing still," Blake explained.

Weiss smiled at her. "Then I will try that. Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Weiss suddenly laughed. "It's incredible. I did it the first time because I was trying to protect Velvet, and now I'm getting tips from a former White Fang member." She wiped away a tear. "Imagine what my father would say!"

Blake grinned. "He'd probably disown you."

"Or make me the new face of public relations."

"I'm sure you'd love that."

"Har har."

Blake started laughing, and soon Weiss joined her. She was sure they both looked like idiots, but it didn't matter.

They were friends having fun. Nothing more, nothing less.

"Aw, did I miss the punchline?"

Blake spun her head around. Yang was standing a short distance away, a smirk plastered on her lips. She heard Weiss stop and shoot behind her, and the ruffling of fabric as she straightened out her shirt.

"There was no punchline, you brute. Blake was just assisting me with my training." Weiss said.

Blake snickered, and walked to Yang's side. "Time to go?"

Yang nodded.

"Alright then. I guess I'm off." She turned to Weiss. "Good luck with your training."

"And to you as well," Weiss said. There seemed to be more on her mind, but she hesitated.

Blake was about to ask what was wrong when she suddenly was wrapped up in her teammates arms. Her grip was surprisingly strong. It wasn't to Yang levels of course, but it was still surprisingly strong from her diminutive form.

"Be safe," she heard before Weiss pulled back. Her mouth was still set in a soft grin.

To say Blake was shocked was like saying that fire is warm. Since meeting her, the closest she had ever seen Weiss get to another person was, well, that night, and that was Ruby, not some faunus who could ruin—

"Can I get a hug?" Yang asked, mimicking Ruby's voice. Weiss rolled her eyes, but to the continued surprise of everyone ever, complied. When she pulled away, Yang continued to stare at her with a stunned expression.

Weiss noticed. "What?"

Yang quickly shook her head. "Nothing! It's just… I don't think I've ever seen you do that before. Like, ever."

"What, show affection?"

"Yeah."

Weiss glared at her.

"And…" Yang's hand went to her neck, her face suddenly stoplight red. "Your face was kinda… on my chest."

Blake didn't think it was possible for someone's skin to turn so colourless.

Nor did she think it was possible for someone to move so quickly, and jab a sword under Yang's chin.

"Don't you dare tell anyone!" Weiss hissed.

Yang snorted. "Relax princess, it happens. Besides, what are you going to do, stab me?"

Weiss's smirk would've reduced even the mightiest to tears. "No, but I happen to know where to get a _very_ strong hair dye.

Yang's eyes narrowed. "You wouldn't dare."

"Try me."

Before Yang could smash Weiss's face in, Blake grabbed her arm and pulled. "Bye Weiss!"

"Goodbye Blake." Her eyes met Yang's. She smirked. "Pink, perhaps?"

Yang didn't say anything. She didn't scream, or fight, or even breathe any heavier. She simply stared at Weiss, and promised pain.

Paling, Weiss silently turned and pulled out her sword. Blake could hear her start practicing again, as if to say, "I will leave you alone now."

Yang's parting look seemed far too serious for something so minor.

"Well!" She clapped, her energy returning. "Let's get going then, shall we?"

* * *

"I'm still surprised you knew this place," Blake said, sipping her water. She was seated across from Yang at a small table within the Rosefeld restaurant, having arrived there mere minutes before. From her seat, she could see out the large window at the front of the building. There wasn't much outside, this close to the wall few people wanted to risk living here.

The restaurant itself wasn't much better really. The paint was peeling, the tables looked hundreds of years old, and the seats seemed to be built out of pure splinters. As far as first date locations went, it honestly sucked.

Blake rammed her head against the table.

"Now you've got me saying it," she muttered.

"Saying what?"

She lifted her eyes to stare at Yang. "Calling this a date."

"…It isn't?"

"No, it's not. I just met her yesterday!"

Yang sipped her water. "I've had dates like that."

Blake leaned forward, puzzled. "Really? Why?"

Yang shrugged. "To get to know the person. Usually a free meal or a movie or something, and it's fun."

"I prefer to know the person _before_ any kind of romance." Blake drained the rest of her glass. The water tasted… metallic, and stale. She brushed it off, probably just old plumbing.

"Speaking of which, where is she?" Yang pulled out her scroll. Blake would've looked at the clock, but she wasn't sure it was actually working. "It's almost seven; I kinda thought she would have been here by now."

"She probably just got held up." As she was saying this, Blake noticed that the restaurant, fairly full when they had first arrived, was beginning to clear out.

"Maybe." Yang frowned. "I swear, if she stood you up…"

"Not a date!"

"Didn't say it was." She tried to take a sip out of her glass, but nothing more than a drop came out.

"Great. Hey, waiter!" she called. "Could use a refill!"

No one came. Blake could hear movement in the kitchen.

"They're probably busy," she said.

Yang stared at the kitchen doors. The grip on her glass was far tighter that it had to be; Blake was worried she was about to break it.

To keep her from doing so, she quickly asked, "How did the thing with Ozpin go?"

Yang let go of her drink and sighed. "Fine. I'm not going to be arrested or anything."

Blake smiled. "That's good."

"Is it?" Yang asked, glaring at her glass.

"He shoved me into an anger management class, so there's that too. And…"

She leaned backwards, crossed her arms, and frowned. Her gaze still rested on her reflective glass.

"He knows something's up. With us, I mean, with what we've been doing." She groaned and covered her face. "With the time travel stuff, I mean. God that sounded wrong."

Despite the seriousness of the issue, Blake couldn't help but chuckle.

Yang smirked. "Ha ha, laugh it up."

Coughing twice, Blake asked, "What did he say? How much does he know?"

"I'm not sure," Yang admitted. "He didn't really say much, just kinda… implied it."

"Great," Blake muttered. "We'll just put him on the list of people we need to keep an eye on…"

The door opened with a shrill ring. Both huntresses turned towards the door. Standing in the doorway was Viola, wearing a pair of thick shades. Her coat was lime green, and seemed to shimmer in the setting sun.

"Sorry I'm late," she said as peeled off her coat. "I ran into some traffic on the way."

"It's okay," Blake assured her.

Viola grinned, and sat down next to Yang. She turned to her. "Who's this?"

"This is-"

* * *

"Yang." She stuck out her hand. "Nice to meet you."

"And a pleasure to meet you," Viola replied, grasping her hand within a strong grip. Yang, not one to be shown up, squeezed back just as hard.

She wasn't quite what she was expecting. From Blake's tale, she was expecting someone small, in need of defending, but that wasn't the person in front of her. Yeah, she was shorter than she was, but only by an inch or two. There was visible muscle under every inch of skin, and her golden eyes were alert and wary.

She was a fighter, no doubt about that.

Letting go of her hand, Viola said, "Not that I mind, but I thought it would just be the two of us?"

The first thing Yang wanted to say was, "why"? Why did she care? Thankfully for her and her friend, she held her tongue, and instead said, "Yeah, sorry about that. Blake told me about you, and... You sound like a really cool person, so..."

Viola stared at her, her eyes searching for something. She looked at her head, her ears, and walked around her to look at her back. Yang felt like a piece of meat being inspected before slaughter.

"Uh... what are you doing?"

"You're a human, aren't you?"

Yang glanced at Blake, who was shooting her an apologetic look, and Viola a nasty glare. Despite her behavior, Yang didn't feel any animosity towards the girl—yet. She had an excuse after all.

Although if she kept doing it, Viola would be finding herself on the receiving end of a haymaker.

"Yes, I am. Is that a problem?"

Viola stepped back. "No, I'm just surprised." She turned to Blake. "Have you ordered yet?"

"No, haven't even been able to find a waiter."

"What?" Viola laughed. "That's ridiculous!" She cupped her hands around her mouth, and shouted, "Hello! Could we get some service out here?"

"No one's going to come," Yang grumbled, before two well-dressed men came out of the kitchen doors. They carried menus and jugs of water, and within seconds their glasses were refilled and their places set.

"I suggest the soup. They make _excellent_ seafood chowder, although their chicken is good too, and they-" Viola prattled on, suggesting dish after dish. Yang began wondering if she thought they were black holes.

"So! Viola," Yang interrupted her speech. "Blake mentioned you were a reporter, right? What exactly do you report on?"

For the briefest of moments, Viola's face grew cold. Yang blinked, and by the time her eyelids opened, the look was gone.

"Mostly Grimm movements, small town's celebrations, things like that." She shrugged. "It's really nothing special."

"Grimm movements? People track that?" Blake asked, setting down her now full glass.

Viola gave a nod. "Yeah, it's not _real_ reporting, but it pays the bills. Danger pay is always good for that."

She took a sip of her water, and then turned to her and asked, "So you go to school with Blakey here?"

For some reason, the nickname irked the blond huntress. Not enough to make her angry, but enough that she was fighting a scowl. "Yeah, I'm in her team. The Y in RWBY."

"RWBY?" She scrunched her forehead. "Never heard of it."

"We've only been around for a week."

Viola nodded, and stretched out her arms. Her wings flared out, allowing Yang to get her first real look at them.

Blake's description of flying squirrel fit perfectly. They were a little darker, and a lot less furry, but stretched out from her sides to her wrists. She could see veins criss-crossing the surface, and the blood moving within them.

She could also see her pits, and her bra, but she didn't bring that up.

"So, R, U—"  
"W," Blake corrected. "For Weiss."

"Right, right, of course, and then…" She pointed at Blake, and then Yang. "B and Y, correct?"

Blake nodded.

"Ha! Knew I could get it!" She pumped her fist. Yang thought it looked a tad ridiculous, but she remembered doing it herself.

Although she made it look cool.

"So, how long have you known Yang?" Viola asked Blake.

"A few…" Blake froze briefly, just short enough to avoid arousing suspicion. "A few years. We, uh… met during a Grimm attack."

"Sounds exciting!"

"Yeah, well…" She raised her glass to her lips. "Been through so many it's… almost like it never happened."

Viola gave her a strange look, and Blake hurriedly started sipping at her glass. Gradually her gaze shifted to Yang.

"So… are your other friends coming, or is are we sticking with a threesome?"

Blake coughed violently, spraying water on the table.

"Um, no, it's just us. Bumblebee and the bat." Yang replied.

Viola smirked at her. "Just checking." A pop song suddenly sounded out from her pocket. She pulled her scroll out.

"Oh man, I'm sorry; I've got to take this."

"Don't worry about it," Blake assured.

Smiling, Viola walked off and brought the device to her ear.

Yang leaned forward. "Why didn't you tell me she was funny?"

"She made one joke last time!"

Yang shook her head. "Man, I've missed so many puns. You wouldn't even believe how many."

Blake's retort was cut off when Viola walked back. She was frowning, and her whole body seemed to have slumped.

"I'm sorry you two, I've just been called in. Apparently, they need me for a story. I would _really_ like to stay, but I can't miss this."

"It's fine, we understand," Blake told her, although Yang could clearly see the sadness in the lines of her face.

Viola gave her a strained smile. "Thanks Blakey." She looked at them both. "I'll try to talk to later, alright?"

"Sure, sure." Yang waved. "Don't worry about it; just go do what you got to do."

"Don't worry, I will." With that, she walked out the door. They both turned to watch her. The sun had set by now, the only illumination for her retreating backside was the streetlights.

It was a good backside.

Yang turned to Blake. "She seemed nice."

"Don't think she's a criminal anymore?"

"I never _really_ thought that. I'm just being cautious!"

"Sure you were." Blake smirked.

Yang shook her head. She was standing up to go to the bathroom when she noticed a coat still hanging on the chair.

"Is that hers?" she asked, pointing eat the offending article of clothing.

Blake picked it up. "It is." She looked out the window. "I hope she's still… do you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

She brought her ear to the coat, holding up a hand to silence her.

eSuddenly her eyes grew to planet size, and she jerked her head away from the coat.

"GET DOWN!" she yelled, and threw it towards the window.

You learn many things in your first year at Signal. How to use your aura, how to train, how not to kill people when you hit them, and when someone says "Get down," or "Take Cover," _you do it._ So before the coat had passed over her head, Yang was under the table, curled up into a ball. She heard Blake land beside her in much the same position.

Briefly spreading her arms, she risked a glance.

Then everything went red.

Pain.

Pain is the first feeling that comes back to her.

She's trapped under something. A rock, a tank, something heavy.

Squirming her arms, she tries to lift the thing off her, but she can't get the limbs to function.

They're trapped.

She's trapped.

The air was hot and almost sickening, but her breathing felt normal. She couldn't see anything, not even her own nose.

Although she can't see that normally, so it doesn't mean much—

 _Stop it Yang, you're delirious._

Yeah I am, shut it me.

Fantastic, now she's talking to herself.

 _Might as well get some friends!_

She tried to open her mouth to speak, but nothing came. Her tongue felt dry and stiff, her throat raw.

 _That's what happens when you swallow fire, you Dumbo. Even someone like you._

She couldn't even bring herself to cough.

Where's her aura? Why didn't it protect her?

 _Wrong kind of fire._

Okay, she certainly didn't know that. Who the hell was there?

 _Are you sure?_

No, of course not. That's why she asked.

 _H_ r _a ha ha._

Shut up.

 _Try to move your legs._

She couldn't.

 _Try harder._

It wasn't working!

 _Blake's in danger. You want to save her? Get up!_

The words struck a bolt of fear through her heart.

Blake was in danger.

Blake was in danger.

The words cleared her clouded mind. She felt her legs and arms twitch, and slowly drew them to her sides. They scraped against the roof and the floor of her personal torture pit, and she could almost feel the blood trailing behind them.

Lifting them up to the object pinning her, she tried to push. The thing shuddered and groaned, and a sprinkle of dirt fell on her face, but it did not move.

 _Come on! Push!_

She couldn't, there was nothing left to push with. What was in that bomb? She was tough, no one could deny that, and yet she felt weaker than a baby.

 _Blake. Will. Die._

No.

 _She will if you can't get out of here!_

No!

Fueled by fear and anger, Yang slammed her fists into the rubble. Her gauntlets were deployed, and although it was a very short punch, she heard it crack.

Grinning, she continued to pummel it, even as blood trickled down her arm. Plaster, wallpaper, even bits of glass fell down and onto her. Some hurt, opening up small wounds across her body.

Some weren't so small.

With a final roar, she burst through the plaster. Her lungs heaved as she took in the fresh air. The night felt wonderfully cool against her skin, like diving into a pool on a hot summer day.

 _Yeah yeah, good job. Now get to Blake!_

Legs shaking, stomach turning, Yang nonetheless found her footing. Slowly she put a foot forward, wincing at the twinge of pain as it hit the ground. Gritting her teeth, she swung another forward, and another.

She didn't know where she was going. Her mind and her legs were operating on separate systems. All she knew was that she had to find her partner. Nothing else mattered.

Nothing.

Her body stopped in front of an overturned table. Peeking out from its surface was a few solitary strands of black hair. Yang fell to her knees and started pulling at the table. Her arms felt like overcooked pasta, but she didn't stop.

With a groan, the table shifted. Yang tossed it off to the side, and stared at the crushed form of her partner. She was alive, indicated solely by the gentle rise and fall of her chest, but her skin was marred by the dozens of bloody scratches covering its surface.

Yang wants to say something, try to wake her up, but she can't get her throat to form the words. All she can manage is a raspy, "No…"

Gently, she grabs Blake left hand. It's undamaged by the flame, but still and motionless. She can't feel a pulse.

The sparks come, as they always do. But this time Yang isn't content to let it happen. She needs to save her, needs this odd connection to do the one thing it's good for.

Lrast time was worse, she remembers. Blake seemed like little more than a shadow, bleeding to death in the alley. The emotions that are dragged up, the pain, the fear, the sadness, they're the same.

Rather than ignore them, or try to supress them, Yang sinks herself into them. She lets herself be consumed by the darkness, all so that she can save the light.

She can feel her throat healing as she said, "Come on Blake. Get up. Get up!" so she knows it's working. Her many wounds heal up before her eyes, but she doesn't stir.

Dimly, she's aware of the crunching footsteps behind her. The muffled voices; the clicking and clacking of guns being armed. If she doesn't move, she will be shot.

The thought scares her less than she expected, but then she realises that if she's shot, then Blake would be next. Placing her hand under her partners head, she lifted Blake up. By now, Yang could feel her strength returning, and Blake's weight is little more than a minor inconvenience.

She looked at the destroyed dining room for a safe place to hide. The collapsed upper stories had created a maze of shattered walls and broken pipes, but none are hidden enough to fulfill her needs.

Finally, her eyes land on the kitchen doors. They're mostly intact, the whole wall is, and Yang can see the faint flickering of an exit sign. She's uncertain if it's safe, but there's no doubt that it's better than out here.

"Come on, I can hear something over here," someone from behind her said. Yang quickly ran to the kitchen, quietly and yet quickly rushing through the doors. She can hear the footsteps pick up the pace, but even with advanced hearing, it would take them a few minutes to actually find her.

She sets Blake down on the floor near the exit, shifting her hands to her shoulders. She looks almost flawless by now, the only injuries left clearly being internal.

Yang, on the other hand, is beginning to feel like… the only way to describe it is like a microwaved burrito, but that doesn't really describe it. Her skin, muscles, and even bone feel tingly, like pins and needles but a thousand times worse. Or better, she's not sure anymore.

Despite the feeling, she carries on. This is the only way to save Blake, so she'll do it. No questions asked.

Her determination is rewarded when two amber eyes flicker open. "Yang?"

Grinning like Ruby with a plate of brownies, Yang enveloped the black-haired girl in a crushing hug, ignoring Blake's protests.

"What happened?" Blake asked the moment Yang pulled away.

"She tried to kill us." Yang felt her joy slip away, replaced by the ever familiar feeling of pure rage. "eThat—that _bitch_ tried to kill you, and me!"

Blake covered her mouth. "Keep your voice down!" she whispered, but it's too late.

"They're still alive!"

"You fucking with me? How?"

"Does it matter? Call it in!"

"Yes sir!"

Yang glanced at the exit sign. "We need to move, can you walk?"

Blake got to her feet, a little wobbly, but much better than Yang had.

"I can do more than that." She pulled out her sword, the black metal gleaming in the dark night. "Let's go—"

"IN HERE! OPEN FIRE!"

The room filled with hundreds of bullets as the man's rifle roared to life. Yang jumped to the counter, weapons armed, and threw a blast towards her attacker. It hit him square in the jaw, sending his head straight into the wall. A cloud of dust fell, but no blood.

"Blake!" Yang called. "Blake! You okay!?"

"I'm fine."

Yang squinted her eyes, barely making out her partners silhouette against the wall. She had found cover behind a bit of broken roof, Gambol shroud held her right hand. It was in pistol mode, aimed straight for the door.

Knowing her partner could hear her, Yang whispered, "Keep them busy, I'm going around the back."

Blake gave her a nod, and Yang slipped through the exit door into the cold night air.

The moon was shattered tonight, spreading across the night sky. It was clear, all the stars easily seen, but she could see clouds rolling in from the west. They were going to have rain soon enough.

Yang hugged the wall, turning the corner with her arms up. She could hear the gunfire from the front of the store as their attackers attempted to take Blake down, but she was giving them a heck of a fight.

Coming to a stop, she peered at the group of soldiers. She counted about eight, all armed with rifles and swords. None of them stood out as some kind of leader, nor did they use any complicated tactics.

They were all White Fang, of course.

Yang narrowed her eyes. There was no way eight (nine) soldiers could take down two huntresses. What were they planning?

Behind them was a dark blue van, likely the vehicle they had arrived in. Its backdoors swung open, and the barrel of a large caliber machine gun poked through.

Oh, that's what they were going to do.

The monster came to life, spewing lead into the building. Shells clattered to the ground all around the truck, anyone too close got a good reminder towards why you didn't.

Blake couldn't survive that onslaught for long.

Yang leapt out of her cover, firing off two shots. The first connected with the cab of the truck, spinning it around to face her. The next smashed into the machine gunner, sending him crashing out the front window.

All the soldiers around her shifted their fire. She felt the bullets hit her, and bounce off. The weapons they were using were clearly low caliber, but there was enough of them to be a threat if she took too many.

A more powerful gunshot echoed from the building, and a familiar pistol flew just past her nose. Yang grabbed the handle and pulled, blocking a sword strike with her other arm.

Blake rocketed out of the front window, landing on an unfortunate soldiers face. Her victim fell to the ground, spitting out teeth.

Yang nimbly stepped to the side, dodging a burst of fire. She threw back her arms and fired, sending her flying towards her attacker. Rolling to a stop, she slammed her fists into his—her stomach, causing her to bend over. The next blow went to her mask, shattering it into a thousand pieces and breaking her nose.

There was blood on her hands, seeping through her fingers. The soldier—the girl, really, lied on the ground whimpering. She had covered her face, trying to keep her nose in one piece. The only part Yang could see were her eyes, staring at her in abject terror.

Closing her eyes, Yang turned around.

Blake ducked under a sword, trapping the blade between her own. Kicking his knees, she twisted her swords and ripped the weapon away. Her attacker, a short man with a small puff of fur for a tail, looked down at his empty hands, and then up to Blake.

She tripped him, and slammed him into the ground.

Another held up his rifle to take a shot at her, but before Blake or the man could react, Yang was grabbing the gun and twisting his wrist. His aura—clearly tougher than the others—held up. Not to be deterred, Yang turned and threw the man over her shoulder. He landed on the ground with a thud.

Then she twisted his arm again.

Hard.

The scream could be heard for miles.

Blake shot Gambol twice, both landing squarely on her targets face. The target, a woman, stumbled back and hissed out a swear. Advancing, Blake slashed her swords across her chest, or would have if the women hadn't pulled out her own sword and blocked.

Blake stepped back, twirling Gambol Shroud around her hands. Her target open her mouth and actually _hissed,_ a forked tongue flickering out between her lips. Not deterred in the slightest, Blake leapt at her, swords cutting through the air fast enough to blur.

Yang would've stepped in to assist, but two soldiers had grabbed her arms just as she tried to move. She tried to squirm her way out, but their grip was too strong.

"Stand down!" One yelled, holding up a gun to her head. "Or she bites it!"

Blake briefly glanced at them, but Yang lightly shook her head.

She could handle this.

Blake nodded, and continued her deadly dance. The soldier next to her tried to yell again, but before he could spit out a letter, Yang rammed the side of her head into his. He fell backwards, landing on his back and letting out a groan of pain.

With her arm free, she fired a shot into her other captives eye. He screamed and let go, bringing up his arms to rub at his eye. With aura, the only damage would be to sight, and even that would be temporary.

The following shots to his private parts were far more permanent.

Yang turned and slammed her foot into the other man's neck. He let out a wet choking sound, and she almost pulled away, afraid that her blow was more damaging than she thought. Then she saw the tears in his eyes.

She snorted. "Sissy."

Dismissing the boy with a final kick to his ribs, Yang turned her attention back to the beautiful display of swordsmanship Blake was engaging in. She and her opponent were locked blade to blade, spinning and leaping over each others blows. This wasn't the rough and tumble fighting Yang was used to, this was art.

The soldier stumbled over one of Blake attacks. Exploiting the opening, Blake struck the hilt of her sword and twisted it, presumably to disarm her opponent. Instead, it split apart, showering both with a fine mist of steel shavings and plastic. Blake stumbled back, clearly disoriented, but her opponent was no better.

And Blake had backup.

"You okay?" Yang asked after she had finished off her opponent. She held out a hand.

Blake took it. "Fine, you?"

Yang grinned. "Good now." She pulled Blake to her feet and examined the battlefield. "Is that all of them?"

Blake shook her head. "I can still hear someone."

"Where?"

She pointed towards the truck, still smoking from Yang's attack. "There."

Nodding, Yang slowly approached the driver side door, Blake taking the other side. She grabbed the door handle, and pulled.

There was a young boy in the seat, clumsily switching between a scroll and a gun. Yang rolled her eyes and launched a jab towards his chin. The top of his head hit the roof and created a dent, and he fell forward onto the steering wheel.

"Is that it?"

Blake nodded, but grabbed the boys scroll and stared at its screen. All the colour in her face vanished.

"What's going on?" Yang asked, shuffling around the truck to her side.

"He called reinforcements."

Yang swallowed a sudden mouthful of spit. "How many?"

That's when she heard the whirring of aircraft.


	16. Two girl war

There was something special in the moments just before a battle. The air felt clearer, the stars brighter. Every muscle sang out with glee. There was no doubt, no hate, no anger, just the knowledge that the only thing that stood between you and death was your aura, your weapon, and your skills.

Blake threw the scroll on the ground and stepped on it, rewarding her with a loud crunch as the device shattered. Yang glared at the slivers of glass that clung to her boot.

A Bullhead flew over the wreckage of their battleground, forcing the two to cover their ears. Dozens of men leapt from its doors, all clad in the white and black colours of the White Fang.

"Great, more people trying to kill us." Yang pumped her gauntlets, shells scattering across the ground. She clipped in two more, and raised her arms. "Who's first!?"

Blake grabbed her arm. "We need to move, now!"

"Why?"

She pointed at their weapons. "Those aren't rifles."

The new soldiers were carrying heavy firepower, mortars, grenade launchers, rocket launchers, and even some new weapons that Blake couldn't place. They carried them expertly, closing the distance between the two groups far faster than she felt comfortable with.

Yang searched the streets. "There." She pointed towards a small, squat building, half a block from their current position. It was made of old, grey concrete, shutters on every window, and a rather nasty looking lock set on the front door. "If anything here's going to provide some cover, it's that."

Blake nodded, only to catch a bullet in her arm. She cried out, more in surprise that pain, but the wound still stung.

"Move!" Yang yelled. She ran towards their impromptu bunker, keeping her arms up to deter any other lucky marksmen. Blake was only a few steps behind her, and from the sounds of it, so were their attackers.

The ground next to them erupted in a burst of flame and dirt, showering the both of them. It was soon followed by many more shots, close enough that Blake could feel the flames licking at her skin.

Yang fired a shot at the door, and threw herself through it in a cloud of splinters. Leaping in behind her, Blake pushed a bookshelf against the doorway. It wouldn't keep them out for longer than a second, but it was all they had.

The store they had barricaded themselves in looked to be some sort of general store. DVDs fought for space with racks of stale bread. Dark freezers advertised cheap and sugar filled frozen confections. She could see a staircase near the back, along with a sign stating, "Roof Access."

"That's way too many guys for the two of us." Yang said, leaning over and panting for breath. "Did they think we brought an army?"

"It's a response team," Blake explained. "They're trained to fight armies."

"Great, so we're facing a special ops team?" Yang stood up, and glared through the window. "What kind of weapons?"

"I—I don't know." Blake pulled out her clip and checked her ammo. "We barely managed to scrounge up some grenades; I have no idea where they got a mortar from."

Any further words was cut off when their hasty barricade was obliterated by a rocket. Yang hugged the wall, firing shot after shot at the approaching horde.

"Son of a freaking—Blake! Get on the roof, take these guys out!"

"On it!" She ran towards the back of the shop, climbing the steps two at a time. At the top was a steel door, which she ran into at full speed.

Outside, she was immediately reminded of an old movie she saw that depicted the Great War. Gunfire filled the night sky; no other noise could cut through. Acrid smoke reached her nose and mouth, nearly causing her to heave what little she had eaten there.

Pulling out Gambol and pulling the slide back, Blake ran to the edge of the roof, peered out into the warzone below her. The soldiers had set themselves up so that they were all facing the doorway. The walls were too thick for bullets to penetrate, and the mortars were still reloading.

Lining up her sights with the closest soldier, she fired off a short volley of bullets. They struck him straight in chest, rising up his body until the final round hit his forehead. He went down like a sack of rotten apples.

Blake aimed another shot, but instead of BANGs, she got clicks. Her clip was empty.

"You have got to be kidding me."

She dropped to the ground, just barely dodging a burst of fire. Slipping out her guns clip, she fumbled for a second one. Debris and dust rained down around her, nearly blinding her. Some fell in her mouth.

Pulling back the slide, Blake leaned over the edge of the roof. Before she can take another shot, a huge chunk of her cover just next to her is suddenly _gone._ She falls back behind the concreate barricade, peeking her head around to see what had torn it away.

In the distance, she can just make out the glint of a snipers scope before a second shot forced her back down. She fired a few quick shots with Gambol, but it was a lost cause.

Not for the first time, she cursed designing her weapon off a pistol. Because of it, she lacked both Ruby's range and Yang's power. Yes, she _technically_ had the highest rate of fire out of the four of them, but that rarely seemed to matter.

Another bullet flew past her head, only just missing her ear. The sniper knew where she was, and wasn't taking any chances.

The soldiers below here charged forward, bolstered by their eye in the sky. Yang's blasts grow more frequent, but she can't hold them back forever. Blake tried to take a few out, but every time her head entered the open air, she had to pull it back. The sniper seemed to take some sick joy in hitting her hair.

OOn top of that, the few shots that did hit were having little effect. These soldiers had a far stronger aura than the first eight, and she could spy a few plates of body armor underneath their clothes.

Her gun couldn't reach the sniper, and it couldn't take the small army below her out.

Blake looked at the building the sniper had holed up in. It appeared to be an apartment building, taller than any of the other structures. Each of its sides were covered in windows, and small ledges that looked like they could support a human.

She shifted her sight to the building next to hers. A fire escape reached up to the roof, the ladder had fallen to the ground, just barely connected to the first platform.

Blake grinned.

Leaving behind a shadow to keep her opponents busy, she clambered up the ladder. Another bullet nearly blew off her foot, but it instead hit the metal below her. The ladder clanged to the ground.

Blake jumped up to the next platform, barely dodging a burst of fire. She pulled out Gambol shroud and fired back at her attacker, missing by a mile.

Scowling, she grabbed the ribbon and threw the weapon into the roof, and pulled herself upwards. Throwing herself on the roof just before she caught a bullet, she started running across the roof.

Another shot threw up a cloud of dust to her left. She stumbled, leaving behind a shadow to distract the shooter. However, the next shot was right next to her foot. Clearly, her attacker knew about her semblance.

She leapt to the next roof, realising too late that it was further down them she thought. Landing on an old radiator, she felt her ankle wrench itself out of position. Pain shot up her leg, but there was no time to patch it up.

Refusing to stop, she kept running. Her leg hurt with every step, but it continued to bear her weight. She pulled out Gambol Shroud and threw it onto the roof, and scrambled up the wall.

The sniper seemingly took offense to this, and just before she could climb onto the roof, her handhold was destroyed. She fell backwards, her hands scrambling for grip, but there wasn't nothing to grab.

Until her hand went _into_ the wall, kicking up a cloud of pulverised brick. She stared at the newly created handhold, not quite believing her eyes.

How…?

The wall was very old, and her body was pumped with adrenaline. Besides, she was fairly strong, not as strong as Yang, but enough to smash some bricks.

Right?

Shaking her head, she threw up her gun and pulled herself onto the roof. There was still two buildings between her and her opponent, and the crowd attacking Yang was growing far too close for comfort.

The two buildings in front of her were both apartments, almost identical to her target. By the standards of the CCT, they were short, but still far too tall for her to scale.

Blake smirked.

If you couldn't go around, go through.

She sprinted to the edge of the roof, throwing up shadow after shadow to draw off fire. Near the edge, she crouched and leapt off, quickly pulling out her sword and firing a few shots at the closest window. A web of cracks spread out on the glass.

Her arms crossed, she crashed into the weakened window and smashed through. A few slivers were deflected by her aura, tweak enough that she almost couldn't feel them.

The floors were made of cheap, but real wood. There was a few splinters near where she landed, but the surface was otherwise smooth and shiny. Looking up, she saw that the rest of the room was in poorer shape. Books were lying on the ground, pages flapping in the wind. The T.V was on, although it only showed black static. There was no personal effects, no pictures. The apartment looked like it was a display model at some store.

A door at the end of the hallway was the only barrier to her continued sprint. The halls of the building itself had cheap carpet and cheaper lighting. If it wasn't for her heritage, she'd be stumbling around in the dark.

After running the length of the building, she came to a door with the number 023 spelt out in golden letters. She pulled out her sword and carves out the handle, ripping out the golden sphere before the weapon reached her back. She drew back her leg and rammed it into the centre of the door. It fell down and hit the floor, the crash echoing through the halls.

Stepping on the wood, she entered the second apartment. It's wasn't even close to the same condition as the first one, the paint was peeling off the walls, the air was cloying with the smell of ash, and she almost stepped on a nail as she rushed through.

There's no need to use her weapon on the next window, as there is no glass. Just a cheap curtain that barely keeps out the light, let alone a seventeen-year-old huntress running for her friend's life.

The distance between the buildings was short enough that she was able to leap across without any assistance. She managed to grab a glimpse of the battle raging below, and the mortars preparing to fire on Yang's position.

A weight fell into the pit of her stomach. Yang was tough, and wouldn't go down without a fight, but she wasn't invulnerable. That much firepower could take down anything short of an Atlesian airship.

She crashed through the window and landed on a cheap table. It groaned, and then broke in two.

Pushing herself to her feet, she brushed off the splinters of wood and glass stuck in her clothes. _Even a cat can't land on their feet all the time._

...Note to self, see a doctor once she was out of this.

Blake walked to the door, and kicked it open. The halls were brightly lit, with tiled floors. Right in front of her was a fire axe, the glass shined to the point that she could see her face in the glass.

She looked like crap. Her face and arms were covered in bruises, many of her wounds from the explosion had reopened, and her ankle was beginning to swell. She couldn't feel any of it, but it was surely only a matter of time before the pain caught up with her.

An explosion from outside broke her out of her examination and sent her charging towards the other end of the building. Crashing through a door, she entered an empty apartment, the only furnishings a small phone hooked to the wall.

Out the window, she could see the barrel of the sniper rifle. It was peeking out through another window, one or two away from her current position. In between it and her was two more windows, a few metres of hallway, and whoever it was taking the shot.

 _You can do this._

Gritting her teeth, Blake jumped through the inch thick glass. The ledge leading to the next building grew closer, so she reached out a hand to grab it.

Her fingers brushed the lip of the concreate, and then she fell.

The air rushed through her hair, the ground growing ever closer. She reached out her hands, fumbling for a grip, before her arms grasped a flowerpot. Her body lurched downwards, wrenching the pots from their banister. She cried out in pain, her arms nearly ripped off her sides. Lifting her feet, she placed them on a window below her.

The sniper hadn't noticed her fall, still trained on Yang's position.

Blake reached up, and grabbed the ledge above. Her arm protested every movement, but she pulled herself up. Again and again she climbed, until she could reach out and touch the barrel of the rifle.

So that's what she did. Grabbing the barrel, she pulled down and tried to wrench it and its owner out of the window and down on the ground. Instead of a falling body and a splat, she instead was hoisted up and pulled in.

The snipers nest was dark, with piles of empty food containers and ammunition on every surface. This was all she could see before she was thrown against the wall; hard enough to crack her skull open if she didn't have her aura.

The sniper, a large gorilla of a man, said, "Gotta admit; I'm amazed you're still standing." His rifle separated into two short swords. "I'll be fixing that."

Blake snarled, and pulled out her sword. The sniper rushed her, swinging at her knees, but she jumped over. His left sword slashed above him, aiming for her neck. She quickly parried, and landed awkwardly behind him, her ankle limiting her movements.

He spun himself around, his swords shifting to dual pistols. Taking aim, he fired a volley of shots. Each bullet screamed past her ear as she dodged or deflected as many as she could, but one struck her in the knee, and another in the chest.

Undaunted, she shifted Gambol Shroud into its pistol shape and threw it into the wall. It stuck in by almost an inch.

The sniper laughed. "I thought you were a good shot!"

Blake gave him no answer beyond pulling out her sheath. She yanked her ribbon tight, and slipped under his next swing. Leaving behind a shadow, she drew the ribbon across his stomach, and rammed her hand into the cheap drywall, pinning him to the wall.

She walked out in front of him. Glaring at her, he spat on her feet.

"Is that all you got?" He yelled, flailing his swords at her. Before he could get another word out Blake punched his head into the wall behind him. She could hear the cracking of the wood as his skull crashed through it.

At least, she hoped it was the wood.

He had dropped both pistols, allowing Blake to pick them up. They were silver, with black leather handles. There was writing on the side, although the language was alien to her. The two blades were folded up under the barrels, along with dozens of metal bits and pieces. On the other side was the scope, awkwardly placed on the slide of the gun.

It was a standard pistol, if a rare model, heavily modified. Standard White Fang practise.

She tried to figure out how the two guns fit together. Truth be told, she hated weapons like this. Two pieces that joined almost always wound up jamming at some point, or refused to reconnect. Sure, Gambol Shroud could split apart, but the sheath was solid metal, no moving parts.

The blade on the left pistol clicked into a grove on the right, and the gun shifted into its rifle shape. Grinning, Blake took it over to the window, and stared down the barrel. Her experience with rifles was limited compared to her own weapon, but she knew how to aim it.

Down the scope, she saw a mortar prepping a shot. Even with her untrained eye, she could tell it would hit the store and obliterate whoever was inside. Which in this case, meant Yang.

She lined up the sights, and counted to three.

Breathe in.

Hold.

Fire.

BANG!

The shot didn't hit her target, the mortar itself, but it did hit the operator. He, or she, it wasn't apparent, fell to the ground, clutching his/her head. Blake felt a brief pang of sympathy. He/she was going to wake up with one heck of a headache.

She aimed at the mortar itself, and pulled the trigger back.

Nothing happened.

She pulled it again.

Still nothing.

She crouched beneath the window and examined the rifle. It… looked fine, so why wasn't it working?

Suddenly, she saw the thin black bulb, nestled just above the trigger. She let out a snort.

Bolt-action. Of course. Semi-automatic pistol mode, bold-action rifle.

Who designed this?

Pulling the bolt back, Blake quickly shot the mortar. A plume of multicolored flames and smoke rose up. The air filled with an echoing roar. The sound and light nearly forced her down, but she managed to keep her hands on the gun.

That's when she saw a flash of yellow hair blitzing at the group.

* * *

The moment the sniper fire switched from Blake to the enemy troops, Yang threw herself out of cover and into the mass of troops. She hated the peek-and-shoot style of combat, always had. _This_ was more her style.

The first guy to notice, a shorter… something, she was barely paying attention anymore, lifted his pistol to shoot. Before he could get a shot off, Yang rammed a fist into his stomach, and when he bent over, knocked him to the ground with her elbow.

Guy-in-a-mask #1000 swung a sword towards her head. She only just managed to avoid getting the top of her hair sheared off.

He smirked, but that soon disappeared as she rose from the ground, small flames darting off her skin.

"You die now."

She threw her arms back and fired herself to her opponent. Landing right in front of him, she fired a shot into his chest. He stumbled back, his arm grasping at the area she hit, before he screamed some feral noise and charged her.

Surprised by the assault, she could only just get her arms up before he swung his sword downwards like it was a claymore. The blow struck her gauntlets, stopping it, but the impact still resonated through her body down to her feet.

Snarling, Yang threw an uppercut at his jaw. Then spun around him to launch him into the air. Launching herself into the sky, she flew over top him and smirked.

He barely had time to look terrified before she smashed both her fists into his surprisingly soft stomach. The ground fled from his landing, knowing what the consequences of fighting Yang Xiao Long entailed.

As soon as she landed, Yang heard the footsteps of another soldier. She turned around, ready to fire another burning shell into his face when she heard the crack of a sniper rifle. A moment later and the soldier was on the ground, clutching her head and moaning incoherently.

She cast an eye towards the far building, catching a brief glint off a scope. She gave Blake, for that was surely the person on the other end, a wink. h

More soldiers, a group of them carrying heavier firepower, ran up to her. She spied a few high-caliber rifles, more mortars, a few grenade launchers, and the odd assault rifle.

She threw back her arms, scattering shells everywhere. Pulling out new clips, she fed them in and fired herself into the group.

Landing on the mortar itself, she barely flinched when a high-speed bullet rocketed into the guy next to her. Yang fired a blast at the closest rifle guy, watching as his unconscious body flew across the field before landing in a mangled heap.

Where do they find these people? Rent-a-cop "R" Us?

A grenade slugged her in the cheek, before detonating less that a millimetre away from her skin. Even with her aura, she could feel the flames licking at her skin, begging to be let in.

Someone, presumably whoever had shot her, said, "That _had_ to kill her, right?"

"No clue, just help me get this thing going!"

They thought she was dead.

Heh, suckers.

Waltzing out of the flames like they were nothing, Yang walked up to the two soldiers, both attempting to prep a mortar. One looked up at her, but before he could react, she fired a shot into his chest.

The other pulled out a pistol, and aimed it at her head. She lifted a fist and threw it forward, flinching back when a bullet slammed into his head. He sprawled out on the ground, clutching his head and screaming.

Yang grimaced. The bullet had hit his ear, and actually seemed to be lodged in it. Taking pity on him, she slammed her fist against his head, knocking him out.

A group of seven approached her, three armed with the high-caliber rifles, four with the smaller rifles. They spread out, circling her.

"Surrender!" one yelled. She had a high-caliber, its barrel less than an inch from the tip of her nose. A shot from that wouldn't kill her, but it would make it a bit harder to defend from the other six.

Yang did nothing but smirk, and glanced towards her teammate. Her smile vanished once she failed to see the glimmer of the scope.

Where was Blake?

Her question was answered once one of the soldiers lurched forward and fell to the ground. Standing behind him was Blake, both swords held high.

Mrs. Soldier turned to fire on her, but she couldn't raise her gun before Yang hit her elbow. Somehow, she still pulled the trigger, and bullets sprayed off into the night sky.

Yang grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back. She kicked her knees, and when she was on the ground she drew back her other arm and rammed it into the back of her head. She shrieked in pain, and then fell to the ground.

Meanwhile, Blake fought against two soldiers, one with a rifle, and one with a grenade launcher. At this range, their more powerful guns were more a liability than an asset, so she was able to easily out maneuver them.

A rifle butt swung towards her head, and to Yang's surprise, connected. Blake stumbled back, clearly dazed, and her two opponents lined up a shot.

Yang screamed out, and within microseconds, she crashed into the closest soldier. She lifted him over her head, and fired twice. He flew into the night sky, far higher than she thought possible.

Soldier two spun on his heels to face her, hoisting his grenade launcher to face her. Moving surprisingly quickly, he fired twice before she was able to react.

Running off pure instinct and anger, she swatted the first grenade away, and met the second with her fist. It blew up, sending flames and shrapnel across her flesh. A few shards cut into her skin; her aura was getting far too low for comfort.

Her attacker screamed, "Are you dead yet?!"

Yang stepped forward, coming out of the fire like a demon from Hell. Her hair, her skin, burned brightly.

His mask, broken from some earlier encounter, showed his two widening eyes. He stumbled backwards, dropping his gun to the ground. He brought up his hands to his face, and she could hear a quiet whimper.

Yang did not stop. She did not pause. She did not slow down. This man had hurt Blake, and that was all that mattered.

She threw a punch into his jaw, then another into his stomach. Then she went for the head again, bashing on it with both hands until his aura was gone. She kept going, not noticing the blood coating her hands.

A hand grabbed her arm. "Yang, stop!"

She turned to look, and saw Blake staring at her with a terrified expression. Her face was marred with dirt and blood, along with cuts and bruises.

"He's out, you stopped him," she told her. Yang looked down at her target, realising that, yes, he wouldn't be getting up again.

Not without a wheelchair, at any rate.

She looked up at the mortars being set up around them. Blake pulled out her weapon and started firing, but it couldn't take them out fast enough.

Yang grit her teeth, and stepped forward. She fired a round towards a nest, and watched in a cocktail of grim satisfaction and horror as it burst into flames. A second later, it exploded. The two men operating it ran, but she wasn't sure if they survived.

She turned her head and fired another shot. Each nest went up in smoke, the operators either disappearing, waiting, or dead. Her heart felt like hammer blows to her chest as it grew heavier, but there wasn't any other choice. Neither of them were in any shape to take on more soldiers.

Finally the noise stopped. The courtyard was empty. Craters littered the ground, along with bodies scattered everywhere she could see. Discarded guns, spent shells, and wrecked cars completed the look.

This was no longer a city. It was a warzone.

Blake bent over, gasping for breath. Her arms went to her chest, and Yang could hear an uncomfortable wet gurgle in her breathing.

"You okay?" she asked, and then walked over. "Forget it. Here." She laid her hand on her shoulder, and she slowly felt the aches and pains of the fight fade away. She still felt exhausted, like she had run a few thousand marathons, and on further examination

Blake pushed her arm away and stood up. "I'm good now. You?"

"Fine." Yang smiled. "So is that it?"

"I…" Her eyes widened. "No, no it's not. RUN!" she yelled, before two Bullheads came over the top of the buildings. Their guns spun up, and began to fire.

Yang threw herself to the side, trying to dodge their fire. They missed most of her, but she could feel a few bullets slam into her side. They didn't break the skin, but that was about all they didn't. The rounds they used were extremely powerful, equivalent to the kind of rounds Ruby used.

Ruby had a firing rate of about two or three a second. They could shoot hundreds in the same time.

Blake copied her strategy, although her semblance made it far more effective. Instead of running for cover, she instead ran for one of the few mortars still in operation. Once she reached it, she quickly set it up and aimed.

A bright, white spot flew out from its barrel, and arced towards a Bullhead. It tried to pull back, but it wasn't able to dodge the blast.

The cockpit erupted into red flames and charred metal. Yang heard screams as it fell out of the sky, crashing into the restaurant where the night had begun.

The second one, first focused on her, shifted its fire to Blake. She tried to take cover in one of the craters, but it soon hovered over her, blasting thousands of rounds into her hiding spot.

Yang threw herself to her feet, and drew back her arm. Her intelligent mind wasn't functioning, or else she'd be wondering what she was trying to do. Ember Celica was powerful, but a Bullhead was designed to take on missiles.

The orange blast flew through the air, crashing straight into the right engine. She was expecting nothing more than a scorch mark. What she instead got was a sudden boom as the engine collapsed in on itself, its casing destroyed by her shot. The ship spun over to its side, flames spewing from the destroyed engine. It went through the top of an apartment, and stopped just before it fell to the ground.

Both Yang and Blake stared at the flames shooting out from the roof. A few soldiers ran to the edge, but stopped before they fell off.

"Well…" Blake said. "That worked."

"Y-yeah, I guess it did."

She heard Blake pull out her scroll, but her focus remained on the destroyed Bullhead, and her hands.

"I can't get a signal."

Yang turned to Blake. "What? How? I can see the tower."

Blake angrily hammered at the screen. "I don't know why. If I did, I'd fix it."

"Well—" Yang was cut off when another truck rocketed past them. "More of them!"

Blake pulled out her sword. "I'm running out of ammo!"

"Yeah, I'm not doing so hot either." Yang threw her arms back and cocked a shot. "But I don't plan on giving up."

The truck flipped around, exposing the two back doors. Yang prepared to fire, but before she could get a shot off the two doors opened.

FWHP!

A mortar fired. She felt the round hit her in the chest. It didn't detonate, not yet, but it sent her flying across the field. After she was in the air, it finally blew up, and she rocketed into a building, smashing through six walls before coming to a stop in someone's refrigerator.

Far, far away from Blake.

* * *

"YANG!" Blake screamed, terrified for her teammates life. There was a chance she was still alive, but it was small. People weren't meant to take hits from artillery, even handheld.

Snarling, she turned to face the soldiers. Most have rifles aimed towards her, but they look nervous. Twitchy.

She's scared them.

Good.

She raised her blades, prepared to charge. They hold their ground, but they also don't attack. Why?

A sudden sharp pain in her skull provides the answer. She's on the ground, nearly out cold. Her head felt like it's being drilled into. Barely conscious, she managed to look up at her attacker.

Viola.

"That bomb was supposed to stop you, you know that?" she said, walking around her as she spoke. "It was supposed to put you in the hospital. I guess your friend, what's her name again, Yan? She saved you. Am I right?"

Blake can't talk, she can't move.

"Oh, don't bother. I can see your aura's almost gone. Any less, and that shot would have sprinkled your pretty little brain all over my men." She turns to the soldiers. "Tie her up, knock her out. I want to be gone in five."

"Yes ma'am."

rBlake weakly raised an arm in defiance to her captors, but they force it back down. They wrapped metal cables around her arms and her legs, pulling them tight enough to draw blood.

Tears stream down her face. It hurt; the soldiers clearly weren't trying to be gentle. Surprisingly, Viola comes to her aid.

"Hey, loosen those up a bit," she told them. "I don't want her losing any limbs."

They don't respond, but she can feel the cables loosen. Not enough for her to escape, unfortunately.

She feels a sharp prick in her neck, and something cold spreads down to her feet.

"Five millilitres," A soldier said. "Should be enough."

"Alright, you grab her shoulders."

"Got it."

"Lift." She's raised up, and unceremoniously dumped in the back of the truck. "And here we go."

A gun is pointed at her head. "Don't move."

Then the doors shut, and she can see nothing.

Viola sighed, and stepped into the truck. She turns to the two surviving soldiers in the backseat, a frown on her face.

"What happened?" she asked, her tone allowing no argument. "This was supposed to be a pick-up, nothing more."

The one on the left, a deer faunus holding an ice pack to his head, spoke up, "We came to the building, just like you said. We heard movement, figured it was them, and tried to shoot."

"And then…?"

"Yellow over there comes rushing out of nowhere, and they tear us apart. Then the response team showed up, and—"

She cut him off. "I know what happens after that." She pulls her head back and relaxes against the seat.

Truth be told, she's a little worried about how everything went down. The bomb she used should have least knocked them out, if not kill them. It wasn't the kind of explosives that you walked away from.

"Well, it's over now." She puts her key into the ignition and turns. "We've got Belladonna, so we'll go back to base and— what the hell?"

She stares at her rear-view mirror. Behind her, the building that Yang had been shot into seemingly burst into flames. A sonic boom echoed out, and out from the fire came a _very_ pissed looking huntress.

The other two see her. "Oh shit! DRIVE!"

She doesn't need to be told twice. Flooring the gas, she pulls away from the courtyard in a cloud of dust.

The streets in this part of town are winding and narrow. The truck can't move very quickly at the best of times, and weighed down with four bodies and a mortar are not the best of times. Still, it's a car, and their pursuer is on foot. They're faster.

Then a blonde haired girl landed on their engine, nearly flipping the truck. She raised her head, and gave Viola a glare that she would never forget.

The two soldiers pull out a pistol and start shooting, but they might as well be firing spit wads. Yang ignored them and started smashing the engine.

"One of you, take the wheel!" Viola yelled, and leaped out the window. Grabbing the windshield, she flips herself around the land a kick on Yang's head. It sends the girl flying off the truck, but before she landed, she fired a shot and launched herself onto the roof.

"You!" she snarled, and threw her fists back. Viola could see the shots being chambered.

"Yep," she said, "Me."

* * *

Yang's never hated anyone as much as she hated Viola. Neo, Mercury, Adam, none of them come close to the sheer level of vitriol she has for the girl in front of her.

She had pulled herself out of the wreckage, running off sheer rage and fear for her partner. She saw _her_ , saw Blake being tied up, saw her weapon tossed on the ground like it garbage.

Picking up Gambol Shroud, Yang watched as the truck sped away. On foot, she had no hope of catching up. Bumblebee was in pieces, or melted, or crushed or something. The other trucks were disabled.

The small part of her mind still thinking logically reminded her that she was in no condition to fight. Her aura was nearly gone; any tournament would say she was out. She couldn't though, not yet. Blake was in danger.

Besides, she still had one last card. Her limbs, her blood, all sang with raw _power,_ her semblance turning every blow she'd taken into strength. She'd never had this much before, never enough to make her almost dizzy.

Or maybe that was the concussion.

Yang glanced at the mortars scattered across the field. If one of those could launch her into a building…

Her gauntlets thundered as she fired herself into the sky. She flew, straight over the buildings and onto a roof. Tiles flew off and cracks spread out. Barely pausing, Yang fired another shot, and jumped to another building.

Down on the streets below, a familiar truck rolled by. She observed it with an inquiring eye. Her anger grew, but she felt… calm, almost. Like the fire had turned to ice. Viola would _die_ tonight, and she would do it with a razor sharp focus.

Didn't mean she wasn't going to rip her limb from limb, and parade her corpse down main-street, but she might make sure she's dead first.

Leaping off the building, she fired another shot and landed on the cab. She planned to disable the truck, but before she could, Viola got involved. Despite being thrown off, she returned to the roof before the truck got moving again.

So that's where she found herself, staring at the girl who had caused so much destruction. She wasn't wearing the same shirt she was before. Instead, she had a tactical looking vest, along with dark khakis. Her arms and legs had silver pistols attached to each joint.

Viola smirked at her, raised up an arm, and waggled her finger.

Yang threw a punch at it.

CRUNCH.

Viola clutched her hand, nearly falling to the ground.

"Son of a _bitch!"_ she spat.

Yang took no mercy, and threw her hand at Viola's head. Her target dodged, grabbed the side of the truck and swung past her. Yang's hand kept going, and smashed through to the truck cab below her.

Viola smirked at her. "What? Am I moving too fast?"

"Shut up!" Yang pulled her fist out and threw another punch. Viola rolled under it, and sprung up, firing two shots out of her legs. Both hit her in the jaw, which really didn't help her growing headache.

Yang threw punch after punch, but Viola continued to dodge. She tried to take out her legs, but she leapt over her shot and landed without a noise on the other side.

"If you can't put out, just say so!"

This wasn't working. Viola was too fast, too agile, and more importantly, she was too tired to take her on. A single shot could probably put her into orbit, but that would require her to actually _hit_ her.

On top of that, she was nearly out of bullets. Firing her way across the rooftops had nearly exhausted her last surviving clipc. Not that it would do much good, since she really didn't want to blow up the truck. Not while Blake was still in it at least.

What did all those action movie guys do when they run out of ideas?

Right, talk.

"Why are you doing this?" Yang asked, pulling herself to her feet. "Why lead her along, _why pretend to care?_ "

Viola shook her head. "You really haven't figured it out yet, have you?"

"How would I have? You went from date to killer in ten seconds!" Slowly, Yang started to edge forward. If she could keep her distracted…

"Yeah, well, that's life." She smirked. "Besides, I wouldn't want to muscle in on your territory, now would I?"

Yang growled, and rushed forward. She threw a volley of terrifyingly powerful punches, but they were easily dodged. And that damnable smirk just. Never. Went. Away.

Viola kicked her, hard, straight in the stomach. She fell back, almost falling off the edge. The only thing keeping her up was one hand on the metal, and it was slipping fast.

Viola walked over, and prepared to fire a shot at her hand. Before she could do so, Yang hit her in the chest and pulled out Gambol Shroud, ramming it into the soft metal. With a tired groan, she pulled herself up.

"You're still going?" Viola said, eyes wide in disbelief. "Holy crap. How?"

"You're kidnapping my teammate." Yang unfurled Gambol shroud, and pointed both parts forward. The swords felt oddly familiar, like an old friend that she hadn't seen in years.

"I don't _like_ that."

Faster than she could remember ever moving, Yang swung both swords at Viola's legs. The faunus jumped over them, and fired a shot at her head. Yang barely managed to jerk out its path.

She stepped forward, close enough to the other girl that she could feel her breath. Viola tried to kick her in between the legs, but Yang swept her foot away. A fist to the side of the head made her stumble, but she quickly cleared her mind and re-entered the fray.

Viola fired two rounds from her arms, both aimed to her feet. Yang's right foot moved to the right just in time, but her left caught the full brunt. She could feel and see the bone splitting, the blood pooling as the bullet traveled through.

"Running on empty?" Viola mocked. Yang responded by smashing both swords into her side and lifting. With no free hands, she continued the assault the only way she had left.

Head-butting. Right into her crotch.

Girls didn't have the exact same pain that a guy would have, but it still hurt when you were hit there. Viola gasped, and Yang flipped over, ramming her head into the truck roof.

With a grim smile, she walked over to her dazed opponent, and prepared a finishing strike. Before she could, the truck suddenly swerved sharply to the right. Yang stuck her blade into the ground, and held on for dear life.

Viola, somehow, got up. The truck continued to swerve, right and left, but her movements were completely smooth and effortless.

She pulled the sword out from the truck. "Goodnight, Yang." She kicked her off.

A trashcan broke her tumble, spewing a foul concoction of rotten food and dirty diapers on her. Yang shook her head and stood up, glaring at the fast-moving truck, and the still smirking girl clinging to it's top.

She tried to fire a shot towards it, but only received clicks. Her weapon was empty, her pockets were empty, she had nothing left.

There was a crack in the door, created when she had nearly fallen off. A gold eye peered out, staring straight at her.

If Blake spoke, it was swallowed by the wind. But the message was completely clear.

Why didn't you save me?

Yang fell to her knees. Tears rolled down her cheeks, wetting the ground with big, fat drops. Hundreds, thousands more fell, until she and the ground were soaked.

She failed.

She was a failure.


	17. Interlude-Continuing the Investigation

Detective Murrey met Herb in a cramped office in the nearest police station. Despite the small space, it was well organised, and well decorated. There was photos of him and a young women, presumably his girlfriend or wife. Several marksmanship trophies sat on his shelves, the newest dating about two years back.

The man himself sat in an office chair, flipping through paperwork. He was relatively fit, although not to huntsman levels, and smelt dangerously of booze. Still, his eyes were clear and focused, so Murrey assumed that he was the 'work hard, play hard' type.

It wasn't a traditional interview, so he didn't worry about protocol. "Detective Herb? I need to speak to you about the embassy case." Short, simple, to the point.

Herb leaned back, staring into his eyes. "Ask away."

Murrey pulled out a small notebook full of scribbles and drawings. He never relied too much on his scroll, too many things that could go wrong. "At the scene, did you notice anything… odd?"

Herb chuckled darkly. "If by odd, you mean something other than the dead guy and the ocean of blood, then no."

Murrey raised an eyebrow. "Nothing? Nothing at all?"

Herb shook his head. He put his hands together and said, "I'm I being investigated?"

"No. Why did you interview Ms. Belladonna?"

"Video footage," Herb replied. "She's also a faunus, so I had reason to suspect that she was with the White Fang."

Murrey struggled to bite back a retort. He knew it wasn't an invalid observation, but he'd seen the darker side of such words far too often.

Taking a steadying breath, he quickly wrote down what he heard.

"Was there any other reason?" he asked, hoping for a breakthrough. "Any peculiar evidence or odd physical features?"

"Nope." Herb pointed towards the door. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm busy."

Murrey pocketed the notebook, and with a scowl, said, "Thank you for time."

* * *

Herb was a bust. The only thing that man knew was how to be a racist asshole and how to match a photograph. Still, he could hopefully narrow down what it wasn't using his information and notes.

After he stepped into his car, Murrey's scroll beeped with an incoming text message. Cursing whoever had designed his pants and seat, he squirmed and twisted until he could pull it out and answer it.

 _Hey Murrey, I got those files you wanted. They're freaking huge, so you'll have to pick them up at the CCT._

 _From, Your friend in filing._

Murrey smirked, always happy to get in touch with his 'friend'. He was an old buddy from school, and although he had dropped out even sooner than Murrey had, they stayed in touch. Now, he was half the reason he ever accomplished anything.

He turned the key, and his car rumbled to life. It was oneish in the afternoon, so he still had time to pick up the data, and then he had to grab some food. His parents were coming over tonight, and they didn't like it when he ordered pizza.

An hour later, the files finished downloading onto his scroll. True to his friend's word, it was nearly ten gigabytes. Any larger, and he'd be looking to find a flash drive.

He looked over it in his car. Most of the files were familiar to him; he had worked the case nearly two years ago. Summer Rose went out on a Grimm hunt and missed her check-in date with her family, a few weeks past and they sent out a rescue party. Her corpse was found, family informed, funeral. Sad, but a typical end for a huntress or huntsman.

The unusual part was in the search party's notes of what they found at the scene. Lots of dead Grimm, enough to take down a small army, laid dead around Summer's body. However, there was no visible cause of death. No bullet wounds, no stab wounds, no crushed bones, nothing.

All of that paled to the body itself. Cause of death was obvious, a large cut on her stomach, bled to death within minutes. An autopsy was never performed. Not because the police didn't think it was necessary, but because the body disappeared before they could move it.

The notes claimed that the body was giving off white flakes, and seemed to be burning up. It said that the search party heard her flesh burn, like it was being cooked from the inside out. Within three hours, all that was left was her hood.

Murrey hadn't though much of this when he first heard of the case. It was undeniably strange, but explainable. He had thought that it was perhaps some fire dust, mixing with her blood as she died.

Then he walked up to the embassy, and saw a blood sample from a teenage girl disappear.

The differences were large enough that he wasn't certain they were related. The girl was still alive, Herb was good for that at least, and the 'flakes' given off were black, not white. But still, the resemblance was uncanny.

For now, Murrey had a simple goal. Investigate the girl; find out if she had a connection to Summer, and see if her death was related. Just another day at the office.

An alarm drew Murrey out of his thoughts. He pulled out his scroll, and groaned. His family had decided to come early, and were waiting at his apartment.

Parents never change, do they?

* * *

 **AN: Sorry about the short chapter.**


	18. Lost, but not forgotten

Police cars sped past her, heading towards the wreckage she and Blake left behind. A few gave her odd looks, but none stopped. Civilians could still be trapped in a building after all, although Yang doubted anyone aside from the White Fang was still alive back there.

Yang continued to move forward. Her legs felt like overcooked spinach, and the rest of her body was slowly freezing to death, but she never stopped. Stopping would mean giving up. Stopping would mean letting Blake die.

That wasn't something she could do.

The only clue she had was the road itself. It was the only way in and out of the cul-de-sac, so there was no other way that the truck could have went. Eventually, it merged onto the highway, but Yang was hoping that the truck would park somewhere before then.

Rain continued to pour on her already soaked body. Thunder rumbled through the sky, and she could see the flashes of lightning. This wasn't really the time to be outside.

Her scroll dinged in her pocket. She made the mistake of bringing it out once, and was rewarded with a dozen worried texts from Ruby, plus several dozen texts from Weiss that were… considerably less nice.

A few cars splashed her, mostly police, yet she still pressed on. The highway was quickly coming into view. If Viola hadn't pulled off the road by now, she wasn't going to.

A lightening flash illuminated the inside of a small building. Inside, Yang could see a white truck, identical to the type used by the White Fang during their attack.

Bingo.

There was two doors leading in, one garage door, and one smaller door to the left. Unsurprisingly, both were locked. Yang peeked through the windows, searching for Blake and her captors, but she couldn't make out anything in the dark.

Frowning, she walked over to the small door. She raised a hand to punch off the lock, but then remembered that she was out of ammo. Instead, she kicked the handle. Once, then twice. On the third time, it broke off, and the door swung open.

When she tried to walk through, she had to grab the doorframe and rest. Just kicking the door had drained most of her strength. Maybe she should wait until…

No, Blake needed her.

Yang lifted her left foot, and brought it down. Then her right, then left, right, left, until she resumed some semblance of her normal walking rhythm.

The warehouse seemed to be abandoned. Cobwebs cluttered the corners, the few shipping containers were old and rusting, and the whole building smelt of human waste. She kicked over a few old cans of beer, but there didn't seem to be any other signs of the White Fang.

Turning the corner of one of the shipping containers, Yang saw the truck, sitting in the middle of the floor. It looked dented, lightly burnt, and otherwise damaged, but there was no sign of Blake.

Yang slammed a hand into the side of the truck, ignoring the pain that shot up her arm. Where was she? Where had they taken her?

"You hear that?" Shit.

"Grab the rifles, let's go."

Footsteps sounded out from behind her. Yang took cover behind the truck, but she wasn't sure what she was going to do if they found her. No ammo, no aura, no backup.

"Dent in the truck." Whoever was there could see it? That meant faunus, which probably meant White Fang.

Well, at least she was on the right track.

"Think it's her?" someone said.

The other person replied with a snort. "We're screwed if it is. Did you hear what those guys were saying?"

"What? You really think they were being serious?" He laughed. "Come on, no one girl is going to take out fifty soldiers."

"Then where is everyone?"

Yang saw the barrel of a gun poke past the back of the truck. She grabbed it, pushed it up, and threw a punch into its holder's stomach. The man stumbled back, holding his arms around his middle.

"Son of—OVER HERE!" he yelled, and Yang tried to attack him again. Before she could get close, a gunshot rang out, and a bullet tore through her knee. She dropped to the ground, stifling a scream.

"Got her!" The second person called out. Yang lifted her head, trying to get her leg to function. Her shooter, a soldier with two small ears poking out from his hair, shot out her other knee.

"Not so tough now, are you?" He brought the barrel of his gun to her forehead. It was a shotgun, twelve gauge from the looks of the barrel. "You think you're so big and strong, but guess what little girl?" He leaned in. "You're done."

"Go fu—" Another shot, this time to her hand. Blood sprayed everywhere, and although she could still feel and move her hand, it was clear it wasn't going to heal.

"Geez, you kiss your mother with that mouth?" He walked over to the first guy. "You alright?"

He held out a hand, which the other man, shorter, with an oddly thick goatee, took graciously. "Fine, just winded." He looked at her. "Is she down?"

"Yeah, she's down," Small-ears replied, and pumped his shotgun. "Let's make sure she doesn't get back up." He pushed the gun against her forehead. Yang closed her eyes, wishing that her last sight wasn't some dingy building in the middle of nowhere.

Who would have thought it? Yang Xiao Long, badass huntress, survived a train wreck, Adam, fought off an army, yet she was going to be killed by some shmuck with a cheap gun.

Blake was still out there, still in desperate need of help. Yet, for the first time in her life, there was nothing Yang could do. She was going to die.

No, not for the first time. The first time was all those years ago, staring at red eyes in the dark. This wasn't so different from that. The red was lines on a mask, the dark not quite as strong, but close enough. Only this time, there wasn't any uncle to save her.

"See you in hell," Small-ears said, and then pulled the trigger.

BANG!

…Only instead of her head turning into a pink mist, Yang heard a yelp. Another gunshot echoed out, and she opened her eyes.

Both her attackers were lying on the floor, weapons scattered around them. To the right of her head was a black mark on the ground, where the shotgun blast had actually hit.

"Yang!" It was Ruby's voice. Suddenly her vision was filled with the terrified visage of her younger sister. Yang grinned.

"Hey Ruby," she croaked, her voice barely audible.

Ruby didn'tt respond, she just grabbed her arms and brought them too her chest.

Weiss came up behind her. "Ruby, is she—oh no," she gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. To her surprise, Yang saw tears in her eyes. Weiss didn't cry, ever.

Yang's vision began to cloud hwith black spots. The feeling of the rough cement and her sister's body faded from her skin. The door to death was opening to her, and the gatekeeper was beckoning her in.

 _You're delirious, again,_ was the first rational thought to come back to her. Yellow light flickered around Ruby, as red flickered around her own form. The two colours mixed, forming the flame that would bring her back to life.

As this was happening, Yang felt… something, ghost over her skin. Like a cool autumn breeze, or an air conditioner kicking in during the summer. Not enough to really cool her down, but enough to make the heat bearable.

The two soldiers got back to their feet. Goatee picked up the rifle and started firing at them. Ruby didn't, couldn't move, but Weiss threw up some kind of force field before the bullets could reach them.

Small-ears picked up his shotgun and tried to flank the trio. Weiss fired a blast of ice at him, which he narrowly dodged. Goatee continued to shoot, keeping Weiss from dropping the shield.

Yang could feel her hand grow back, and her knee snap back into place. Still, she found that she couldn't move said limbs, meaning she was still helpless while someone else saved her life.

Again.

"Damnit! I'm out!" Small ears cried. "Cover me!" The volume of fire on their position intensified. Dust flew out of Weiss's rapier, reinforcing the fading shield with shards of ice. It was a temporary measure however, as several large chunks landed on her chest and face.

"Ruby! I need help!" Weiss yelled. Ruby lifted her gaze, but her hands didn't twitch.

"She's still healing!"

"She can wait! We're about to get killed!"

Ruby rolled her eyes, like she was being asked to take out the garbage, rather than two armed terrorists. She let go of her hands, taking the cooling sensation with her. Pulling out Crescent Rose, she leapt at Small ears.

"…Not quite what I meant." Weiss sighed, and leaned around her ice shield to launch a bolt of lightning at Goatee. To his credit, he barely looked singed afterwords.

Ruby, meanwhile, dodged a shot from Small ear's shotgun. He tried to clobber her with its butt when she got close, but Ruby merely dodged under his swing, and introduced her scythe to his head.

It was a very quick meeting.

Goatee took one look at his newly unconscious teammate, and decided that he liked _not_ having a concussion. He threw his weapon to the ground and held up his hands.

Weiss smirked. "Smart man."

Ruby reached down the grab her hand, intending to continue the healing process. Yang instead used it to pull herself to her feet, feeling her Aura begin to recharge. She wasn't fully healed, not even close, but enough was fixed for her to move.

Kinda like a car battery, now that she thought about it.

"You okay?" Ruby asked, concern written across her face. Yang gave a terse nod in reply.

"What were you thinking?" Weiss shrieked. Her voice sounded like some sonic torture device. "You could've died!"

Yang whipped her head around the face the heiress. Her eyes were blood red, and her aura created a wasteful display of fireworks. "They have Blake! I couldn't just sit around and do nothing!"

Weiss snorted. "And if you died, how much help would you be then?"

Yang lifted a fist, intending to punch Weiss in her stupid nose. Before she could do so, Ruby grabbed her arm and hung off it. "Knock it off you two! We've got other problems."

The trio turned to the surrender soldier, who quickly averted his eyes. Weiss stomped over, and flicked her sword against his jugular.

"You took a friend of ours," she growled, pressing the blade against his skin just hard enough to draw blood. "Where did you take her?"

Goatee spat a wad of phlegm at her face. It landed on her forehead, and slowly slid down until it sat at the tip of his nose.

"That," she said, wiping it off. "Was uncalled for." She pointed her sword at Yang. "Do you see that women? She wants the same thing I want. The difference? I'm being nice about it."

Goatee laughed, a harsh sound that resembled choking more than anything. "Nice? You're a _Schnee._ You wouldn't know nice if it crawled up your tiny little—"

Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say, as Weiss proceeded to freeze his private parts solid. All of them.

For the first time, Yang realised just how angry Weiss really was. This wasn't "Mildly annoyed" Weiss, this was, "You die now" Weiss.

"SON OF A—!" he screamed, before Weiss smashed the hilt of her sword against his face.

"I'll ask one more time. Where. Is. My. Friend?"

"I don't know!" he replied, trying to push the ice off with his hands. "They don't tell us where the main base is! Please! Just let me go-o-o…" Oh god, he was crying. "I-I just want to see my kids again…"

Weiss's expression softened. She dropped a miniscule amount of fire Dust onto his frozen legs. "Put some aura into that. Slowly."

He did as she said, and the ice began to melt. Not quick enough for him to escape anytime soon, but he wouldn't be losing anything either.

Not that he likely had all that much to begin with.

"I'm going to go… look, at documents," Weiss said to Ruby. "You two… have fun." She walked to a small desk, presumably where the two soldiers were before Yang arrived.

Ruby turned to her. "Yang…"

"Don't say it."

"I wasn't—"

"Not a word." Yang sighed, wincing when she breathed in. Her ribs were still hurt, or at least sore.

"I just wanted to ask—"

"I'm fine!"

Ruby went quiet. Yang felt a quick pang of guilt, but ignored it. She left through the door she entered in, her movements far quicker and smoother than they were before.

The rain was still going, although she could see the sun peeking through the clouds. Somehow, the night had passed.

Yang sat down on the curb, kicking a rock into a drain. The city was slowly waking up; cars rumbled out of driveways, school buses picked up kids. A few onlookers stared and her and the building behind her, several still in pajamas. The gunshot's had likely awoken many of them.

A strip of red shells landed next to her.

"I was asking if you needed more ammo."

Yang wordlessly clicked the bullets into her weapon. It felt good to have firepower again.

"You know we' ll find her, right?"

Yang couldn't meet her eyes. Ruby sighed, and sat down next to her.

"How are you so calm?" Yang asked, staring into a puddle, and her own reflection. "They have Blake, and we don't really know _why."_

Ruby shrugged. "I am scared; I'm just not focusing on it. If we're going to find Blake, we need to keep focus."

"I wish it was that easy."

Ruby tilted her head, and grabbed her shoulder. "Yang, it's not your fault."

"How is it not!?" Yang stood up, spreading out her arms. In the corner of her eye, she saw a few scrolls recording her. "I'm the one who couldn't stop Viola, I'm the one who nearly got _killed_ here, I'm the one who didn't let you guys come with, how is this not my fault?"

Ruby grabbed her in a tight hug. "Because it's my fault too!"

"Ruby—"

"No!" She pulled away. "I should've insisted we went together or that you didn't go at all or something!" Much quieter, she added, "I'm her leader, keeping you and Blake safe is my job."

 _Keeping you safe._

 _Keeping_ _ **you**_ _safe._

"I DON'T NEED YOU PROTECTING ME!" Yang roared, flames flying of her raging form. Her hands were balled into fists, and her eyes had turned red.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean—"

"I'm not a-a girl in pigtails anymore! Stop treating me like I am!"

"I'm not!"

"I can handle myself! I don't… I don't…" Yang fell to the curb, her aura turning off, and her eyes returning to their normal colour. "I'm sorry…"

Ruby blinked, slowly setting down beside her. "It's—it's okay; just tell me what's wrong."

Yang took a deep breath, looked at Ruby, and almost lost her nerve. This was her _sister._ She couldn't burden her with her own crap.

Ruby noticed her hesitation. She sighed. "As your leader, I _order_ you to tell me what's wrong."

Yang gave her a mirthless smile. "You're getting good at this."

She shrugged. "I try."

Yang sighed. "I'm… I'm just so… tired, of always needing to be rescued." She closed her eyes. "Qrow had to save me from the Grimm, Mom had to save me from Neo, Blake had to save me from Adam, and now you guys had to save me from those idiots."

She opened her eyes and stared into the rising sun. "Meanwhile, I'm making every situation we get in worse and worse and worse."

"No, you don't."

"Yes I do, Ruby. Think about it; I broke Mercury's leg—ah! No arguments!"

"But you didn't! He was walking around a day later!" Ruby insisted, slapping her knees with her fists.

"Trust me, his leg _was_ broken." She smiled grimly. "Besides, I don't have that excuse for Cardin."

Ruby turned silent.

"I'm supposed to be a _protector,"_ Yang continued. "A big sister, a huntress, a… a hero, but I'm not." She let out a slow sigh. "I'm just… a little girl, who's in way over her head."

Ruby grabbed her shoulder, and pulled her into a hug. Yang brought her arms up and reciprocated. She was surprised at the hot tears falling down her cheeks.

"You don't have to be a _big_ sister, or a huntress, or a hero," Ruby whispered. "You just have to be _my_ sister, Blake's partner, and Weiss's teammate. That's it.

"That's all you have to be."

Neither moved for what felt like hours, until Weiss came out and said they had a lead.

* * *

Blake couldn't think of worse trip she had taken. Every time the truck hit a pothole, or merely bounced on the road, the metal surrounding her wrists and ankles cut into her skin. Drops of blood fell to the floor, the only colour she could see in the darkness.

She still remembered Yang's face as she sped away. Staring at her like there was nothing left to live for. It added guilt to the already unstable cocktail of anger, fear, and betrayal brewing within her. Yang had already been through enough crap this week; she didn't need this added to it.

Not that it was her fault, not really. It was Viola's. Viola, the name that once made her hope for normality, had instead dragged her back into the hands of the White Fang. _Thinking_ of her made her blood boil, and the knowledge that she was _there,_ in the cab...

However, there was nothing she could do. The cables were strong enough to stop a race car, and they were wrapped too tightly for her to wiggle out. If she had Gambol Shroud, and a free hand, she might be able to escape, but her weapon was left behind.

She was at the 'mercy' of her captors.

At some point, they pulled into a building. They pulled her out, and carried her to another car. Without a word, they continued driving.

Eventually, the truck again began to slow down. Blake slid across the floor, softly colliding with the cab. She could hear voices.

"We made it." Viola.

"Just. City's looking for us." Someone else, one of the White Fang. She didn't know who.

"He'll handle it; just go get the cell ready."

"Yes ma'am."

Blake heard two doors slam shut. The engine died, and light came pouring in through the back doors.

"Rise and shine kitty-cat. Someone wants to meet you," Viola said, but it wasn't her arms that grabbed Blake and lifted her. She tries to make it harder on them, worming around and loosening their grip, but it's no use. They just clamp down on her arms and legs, and carry her like a pig roast.

"You've been a bad kitty tonight, haven't you?" Blake glared at her, not amused at her attempts at humour. If she had a free arm, Viola would be missing an eye.

Viola smirked, and leads the entourage out of the garage and into the main warehouse. The lights are dim, (standard practise in case of attack) and the windows covered with a variety of cloths. What draws her eyes is the sheer number of people in the building.

Soldiers run drills with their weapons, medics patch together the wounded, and their stocks of food and weaponry are counted and distributed. This isn't any base; this is the main HQ of the White Fang.

What are they doing in Vale?

"Blake." Blake feels her blood freeze, and she slowly turns her head to face the speaker. _No, no it can't be..._

Adam stands in front of her, his arms hanging by his sides. He's wearing the mask, so she can't see his face, but she can feel the hate and the anger radiating off him. Viola grins, walks over, and kisses him, long and hard on the lips.

Blake felt like throwing up. Instead, she rolled her eyes and said, "This explains so much."

Adam pulled away and unsheathed his sword. For the briefest of moments, he actually seemed to be smiling.

 _What the hell is going on here?_

"Stop talking, if you don't want me to cut your tongue off. _"_

Normally, Blake would cooperate. Tonight, however, she felt an unusual amount of bravery, or perhaps stupidity would be more accurate.

"You can try," she growled, all but spitting at her former partner. Adam's mouth curls into an ugly scowl, and he seemed ready to kill her right then and there.

Viola, again, must be trying to reset her karma, came to her rescue. "Adam, don't." She grabbed his arm. Surprisingly, it stopped him.

Who was this girl?

Viola pulled him in, close. They whispered quiet enough that she couldn't hear them, even with her ears. Whatever she said, it caused Adam to sheath his sword and step away. The glower remained.

He gestured towards the two men holding her up. "Why is she still conscious?"

The one holding her arms responded, "I don't know. We hit her with the drugs, but I guess they didn't work."

He eyed her still squirming form. "I guess not. Those bonds going to hold her?"

"They should."

He nodded. "Lock her up. Post two guards, three if she gets... uncooperative."

"Yes sir." They hauled her off to a modified shipping container. There was a heavy lock on a chain holding the door shut. The one holding her hands let her drop and pulled out a key. Blood rushed to her head, and she became acutely aware of the lingering pain in her ankle.

"Welcome to your room." She was tossed in, and landed hard on her head. "I hope you _enjoy_ your stay." The door shut, and she was alone again, in the dark.

Blake slowly got to her feet. It was a massive struggle to move in her bindings, but she managed to hop over to the crack between the doors. All she could see was a thin sliver of light, but she put her ears to it and listened.

"So that's the girl, huh."

"What, expecting something else?"

"Well, she doesn't really seem like she's worth all this trouble."

"You got no idea what she did to us."

"Yeah, that's kinda my point."

Something, probably an arm, was hit.

"Look, don't ask too many questions. Adam's touchy about this, and I can't really blame him."

"What she do, kill someone?"

"Actually—Shh! someone's coming!"

"Identify yourself!"

A dark, familiar voice answered. "It's me."

"Oh! Sorry sir! I didn't recognise you."

"Just open the door."

Chains rattled and suddenly light spilled in to the darkness. Any joy brought by that was soon sucked up by the man that stepped through.

"Hello, my dearest Blake."

She stumbled back, trying to put as much distance between him and her as possible. Any bravery she felt earlier was gone, replaced by the knowledge of _exactly_ what he could do to her.

He stepped forward, seemingly unconcerned and uncaring. Blake knew better, he wasn't missing a thing she did.

"Do you know how _long_ I've been waiting for you to leave that island?" He drawled. "How many nights I've spent, unable to _sleep,_ because of what you did to me?"

"I don't know."

He smiled. "Of course you don't."

Almost faster than she could see, Adam drew back a hand and flung it across her face. Normally, she would barely even notice the hit, but with her arms and legs bound as they were, it caused her to fall to the ground. She landed on her hip, which gave off a worrying CRACK as she landed.

"Now, from what I hear, the drugs we gave you aren't working." He pulled his sword, still sheathed. "So in order to keep you from escaping…" He brought the black bar up, and then swung it down on her head. She tried to move, but the cables again proved her undoing.

The second it hit, stars danced across her vision. The box grew darker, despite the light from the open doors. Adam's harsh laugh sounded like a demon.

"Oh, you think this hurts?" He leaned in, his mouth next to her ear. "It can never equal the pain you've given me."

"What did I do to you?" Despite the pain, Blake's voice was as steady as it could possibly be. She knew Adam, if she showed weakness, he'd push harder.

He smirked. "You know _exactly_ what you did." He hit her again, this time in the stomach. Blake curled into a ball, nearly throwing up. "You can't run from it any longer." Another blow, again to her head. She felt one of her teeth splinter off and fall on her tongue. "And you can't run from _me."_

He drew back his arms for another blow, but before he could, someone knocked at the door.

"Adam?" It was Viola. "Torchwick needs to speak with you, something about the plan?"

Adam growled. Attaching his sheath to his belt again, he whispered, "I'll be back." Then he walked off, and closed the doors.

No one could see in.

Blake spat out the jagged remains of her tooth, awkwardly picked it up with her hands, and got to work.


	19. On the hunt

Ruby pushed open the door leading to City Hall, nearly tripping over the small ledge. Not for the first time, she cursed the shoes Weiss had insisted she wear.

Trying (and failing) to regain her dignity, Ruby walked over to the desk, where a young woman sat. Her focus was on a computer screen, and Ruby could see a small earbud in her left ear.

"Two o'clock appointment?" She asked, and Ruby almost replied. Before she could, the woman continued, "Of course, I'll fit you in. Have a nice day." She tapped her ear, and then suddenly noticed her. "Oh! Hello there. Can I help you?"

Ruby swallowed, trying to ignore the sudden weight in her stomach. This was the point where things could go disastrously wrong in Weiss's plan, and it all depended on how well she handled this conversation.

"I'm doing a project for school on...um..." What was it?

"Oh! Local businesses! I need to know how many buildings a..." She pulled out a sheet of paper. "Gladium has."

She lifted her eyes from the paper to the woman, hoping she'd accept her lie. Weiss's lead was useless without the information.

In the warehouse, while Yang and Ruby had their heart-to-heart, Weiss searched through the few papers the White Fang left. Most were personal letters, notes, that kind of thing. However, a few were taxes.

Those taxes listed the owner as Gladium, a farming company. Ruby had never heard of it, and neither had Weiss. She had a pretty good idea what it was, though.

"It's probably a shell company, no other purpose beyond keeping the building clean," she explained during the taxi ride over. "Big corporations use them all the time for... profit diversification."

Her hope was that they could use the name to track down buildings the White Fang owned, and find Blake through that. However, there was one teeny tiny problem...

They had to find the buildings first. Thankfully, the information wasn't illegal to look for, and the City would, and could provide it.

However, they did need a decent reason to be looking for it. Yang suggested the 'school project' excuse, but they needed someone who actually looked the part of a young student.

So that's why Ruby found herself standing here, wearing a stupid dress, and missing her sweetheart. Stupid partners and their excuses, "You'll never pass as a student with that on, you dolt."

"That won't be a problem, honey." Ruby shook her head and refocused. The woman was holding a pen and a slip of paper. "Now, I just need your name and scroll number."

Ruby tried not to let her panic show. "Uh...why? I mean, can't you just look it up?"

The woman's smile grew slightly strained. "New policy, I'm afraid. I need to know who accessed what information. Security concerns, you understand."

Crap crap crap. This wasn't part of the plan!

"Umm... Ruby Rose," she said, deciding success was worth the risk. Even if Cinder looked into her activities, it wasn't like this was all that suspicious.

Ruby gave her number, and then waited as the woman trawled through property records. It took a few minutes, but she was eventually called back up.

The woman handed her a sheet of paper. "Here you go, every building Gladium owns. Hope it helps."

The smile that graced Ruby's face required no acting. Almost bouncing, she said, "Thank you thank you thank you-!"

"Okay, I got it!" The woman laughed. "Have a good day now."

Ruby nodded, and ran out of the building. Across the street waited Yang and Weiss, sitting at a restaurant table and trying to look casual. They still stuck out like a poppy in a field of clovers. Weiss saw her, and waved her over.

"Did you get it?" She asked. Ruby nodded, and passed the paper over. "Alright, this isn't too bad. Two locations, three if you count the one we already visited."

Yang, in the middle of drinking a large espresso, drained the rest of her cup and threw it away. "Which one am I hitting?"

Weiss glared at her. _"We're_ not hitting anything. This is going straight to the police."

Yang's eyes grew into small planets, and slammed her hands into the table, leaving two large dents. "What!? No, no we're not giving this to the police! We're not giving this to _anyone!"_

Weiss glared at the blond girl. Ruby noticed her left hand traveling towards Myrtenaster.

"Why not?" She asked, gripping her sword like she may have to pull it out. "Why shouldn't we bring this to the police? This isn't some club, we're fighting actual _killers."_

"We did before too," Ruby pointed out, trying to stay diplomatic. Her leader sense told her to intervene before things got too serious, but she also wanted to hear both of their arguments.

"True," Weiss admitted. "But that was different. We were information gathering, or didn't have much choice." She leaned in, staring at Yang directly. "Now, now there're too dangerous. Neither of us are sure what exactly happened at the restaurant, but we the fight from Beacon. That kind of weaponry is… far beyond what we should be dealing with."

"That doesn't matter!" Yang argued. "Think about it, if we go to the police, or Ozpin, or anyone else, this'll wind up on the news, right?"

"That's true, but…"

"And if Adam hears about it, he'll run. He'll disappear, and take Blake with him." Her hands curled into fists, and her voice dropped an octave. "Or worse."

Weiss glared at her. Then her mouth faded into a tired frown, and she sighed. "You have a point," she acquiesced. Picking up the paper, she tore a strip off and pocketed it, and then handed the rest to Ruby. "This building looks like the largest. You two take this one, and I'll go to the smaller one. We'll meet outside your building."

Ruby nodded.

Another sigh. "Then let's get to it, shall we?"

* * *

As it turned out, breaking metal cables with a broken tooth, even one with aura constantly pumped into it, takes a long time. Blake couldn't saw through the cable itself. That would take far too long, so she had to jam the narrow end of the tooth under a single thread, and push and pull it until it snapped. Rinse and repeat.

She heard her two jailers talking a few times, nothing useful, sadly. Mostly they talked about their families, or the antics of the soldiers around here. Despite being a prisoner of them, Blake felt a slight pang of nostalgia for her own days in the White Fang. There was a simplicity to her life, a knowledge of who was in the right, and who was wrong.

Another thread snapped. Blake pulled her arms apart, trying to break the rest with her own strength. The metal held, but she could see it start to weaken. An hour in, and she had managed to cut away half of the cable surrounding her arms. It amounted to about three-hundred individual threads.

Aura was keeping her tooth fragment sharp, but it was getting harder and harder to saw. She wasn't surprised. She was trying to use a butter knife to cut through diamond.

"Hey, think we should check on Mrs. Tall and dark in there?"

"Go ahead; just make sure she doesn't hop past you."

They both laughed.

Shit.

There was nowhere for her to hide, no way to pretend she hadn't been doing anything. Even if the soldiers were brain-dead, they would surely see the frayed metal around her wrists.

Well, when you can't hide, and you can't run, there's only one option.

Attack.

The door swung open. One of the guards walked in.

"Wakey wakey!" he called. "Time for your check up!" That's when he caught sight of her, and her arms. "How did you—"

Before he could finish, Blake swung her arms at his head. With the added weight, it was too slow to hit him, but it made him pull out his sword and retaliate. She blocked it with the cable between her arms, and it snapped in two.

He looked at the fallen cable, and then at her. "Fuck me."

She threw a punch into his nose, hard enough to send his head crashing into the wall. He dropped his sword, which she picked up and used to hack through the cables around her legs. In two swings, they were gone, and she could move freely.

Guard #2 came around the corner. He raised his rifle to shoot, but before he could blink, Blake ran over, and cut his gun in half.

"Holy…" he breathed, before Blake slammed the flat of her sword against his head. She felt his aura break, and his body crumpled to the ground.

pGuard #1, still clutching a broken nose, his mask broken, stumbled out of the container. He spat a wad of blood and spit at her. "That all you got!?"

Blake replied by dropping to the floor, and sweeping his legs out from under him. He dropped onto the floor, his head bouncing off the concrete surface. She slammed her foot against his forehead, knocking him out for good.

The room was quiet now, save for the soft breathing of the two unconscious guards, and her own rasping breath. Her aura was still in tatters, and the fight hadn't done much good for it. Thankfully, her ankle felt much better now.

She lifted the sword up and into the light. It wasn't anything special, just a cheap, mass produced blade stuck on an equally cheap handle, but it would hold up. At least until she got out of here.

Grabbing a sheath from the unconscious guard, she looked around her current environment. She was in the main storage room of the warehouse. Cargo containers were set up to create walls, making the place look like it was made of Legos. Window's allowed streaks of sunlight in, with the darker spots illuminated with large florescent lights.

Blake gave a small smile. This wasn't a perfect set up for sneaking around, but it could be far worse. If she could get up, no one would see her, and most would struggle to hear her.

If she could get up.

The crates were stacked very cleanly, with few handholds. She was able to jam her fingers into the lip between the walls and the flooring, but it wasn't enough leverage to lift herself higher than a few inches. If she could find a narrow hallway or the like she could jump up them, but that would create far too much noise.

So she was going to have to stay low. Perfect.

Her mini jail cell was surrounded by walls on all four sides, with one narrow hallway leading out. Blake pulled out her sword, and kept it in front of her as she walked down it. In these tight spaces, stealth would rely more on luck and speed then skill.

Down the hall, left turn, walk for five minutes and turn right. Blake wasn't sure if she could find her way back, the walls were beginning to combine into a rainbow slurry in her memories.

"Hey, Jadi." Crap, another soldier, just past the next corner. She crouched down, and took cover.

"Hello? Jadi, you there?" TAP TAP. "Hello? Come on man, answer me…"

She heard Velcro opening and closing. A different voice spoke up. "Where are you going?"

"To the cell, Jadi isn't answering."

"Sure he isn't just drunk again?" A third voice, this one a girl.

"Hey! He's been clean for weeks!" Another girl, younger.

A small scuffle broke out. Blake peeked around the corner, and saw four people: two fighting, one trying to stop them, and one…

"Holy—she's there!"

Well, so much for stealth.

Blake flew out of cover, smashing her sword into the man's solar plexus. She noticed three things: the soldiers weren't armed; there was a fire alarm on the wall, inches away from the radio-man's hand, and the younger girl was… painting her nails. Or was before the fight broke out.

…Alright then.

Whistleblower—the guy who spotted her—recovered, and sent a well-executed, if somewhat telegraphed, punch at her neck. Blake lifted her sword, blocking the blow.

Before she could retaliate, Radio-man grabbed her hair and pulled down, nearly ripping it out of her scalp. Blake leapt upwards, causing the man to fall to the ground. She used his head as a land pad, giving his teeth a kick for good measure.

Her victory was short lived, as the table the nail-painting girl had used was thrown at her, knocking her to the ground. The same girl walked over to her.

"Got you, you son of a—" Her swear was cut off when Blake spun around, sweeping her legs out from under her. Unlike the guards, she recovered, but it gave Blake time to get up.

Nail-painter didn't say another word, instead choosing to throw a lightning fast fist at her head. Blake shifted her neck to dodge, but the blow clipped her ear. This girl was _fast._

The second girl lacked any distinguishing features, aside from a mouse tail. A mouse tail. A mouse faunus, facing a cat faunus.

The universe was _mocking_ her now, wasn't it?

The mouse faunus picked up a broken table leg, and swung it against her back. Still dodging Nail-painters frantic attacks, Blake had no choice but to take the hit.

Her aura, even drained, was the only reason her back didn't break. Pain lanced out, traveling through her body, leaving behind an odd tingling even once it had left. She didn't fall, but it left her distracted enough to catch Nail-painter's knee in her chin. Her head crashed into another shipping container.

Nail-painter and Mouse walked up. Whistleblower, clutching a sore wrist, stomped over.

"Is she down?" he asked, staring at her still moving chest.

Nail-painter shook her head. "I don't think so. Her aura hasn't broken."

Whistleblower pulled out a long chain. "I'll fix that, don't you worry." He whipped the chain, fire crackling along its length. "Time for a good old fashioned cremation."

Mouse grabbed his arm. "Don't you dare kill her, Adam still wants her alive."

Whistleblower scowled. "Fine," he muttered, and lifted the chain up. "I'll go easy on her." He brought the chain down on her legs, tearing through aura and bone, having forgotten to take into account her earlier injuries.

Or, at least, that's what would have happened, had Blake not dodged out of his weapons path, leaving a shadow behind to take the hit. His expression morphed into shock and rage, before she spun around, landing a kick on the side of his head.

Mouse and Nail-painter pulled up their arms, apparently forgetting about the alarm less than a foot away. Blake thought they were a bit overconfident. Even if they could take her out, which was a big if, bringing back-up never hurt.

"You're _mine,"_ Mouse growled. Ah, that's why. Glory, of course.

Nail-painter leapt at her, limbs blurring into a solid wall of punches and kicks. Blake dodged and parried, barely managing to avoid another hit.

However, her movements left her open the Mouse, who took advantage of her openings and hit her with blows Yang would be proud of.

Blake couldn't help but admire their teamwork. The more agile partner kept the opponent busy, and gave the powerhouse openings to dish out pain. The powerhouse also kept their foe from moving, forcing them to take more hits from their partner.

Something had to break, but luckily, it wasn't Blake. Nail-painter overextended her arm, allowing Blake to hit her elbow and throw her across the room.

Mouse, robbed of her support, valiantly tried to tackle her. Blake hiked up her knee, smashing it between her legs. While she was reeling from that, Blake swept her sword against her head, and t

he smashed the body part into the floor with her free hand.

Nail-painter got back up, but she was holding her shoulder and had a pained expression. Her eyes darted towards the alarm, and her feet soon followed. Blake threw herself forward, using a clone for extra propulsion. Her foe was closer to the alarm than she was to her, but Blake was faster.

Much, much faster.

She crashed into Nail-painter's stomach with a perfect flying tackle, sending her down. Any aura she had was long gone, so all Blake had to do was wrap her arm around her neck and squeeze. She pressed her head against Nail-painter's back, listening to her heartbeat as it began to slow down.

Within a few minutes, her breathing slowed, and she stopped struggling. Blake let her go, taking care to keep her head from hitting the ground.

Blake sighed, and stood up. All four of her opponents were in various stages of unconsciousness, and she couldn't hear any sign of the alarm being risen. Still, the scuffle had been far noisier than she wanted, and considering what she heard, they would be found before long.

It was time to move.

She slipped through the remainder of the warehouse, narrowly missing detection several times. As she grew closer and closer to the doors, patrols grew denser, and more heavily armed. Her initial combat success would likely not be repeated.

However, the boxes also grew less tightly packed. There was more cracks that she could slip through, allowing her to bypass entire sections of the building. Forklifts and tools became more common, as if the White Fang was trying to make the building seem more like a normal warehouse.

Finally, she came to a door. There was a window running down its length, and through it, she could see an exit sign.

Slowly, she turned the handle. The door was well-oiled, and was silent as she pushed it open. Stepping through, she closed it behind her, and sighed in relief. No alarm, no more soldiers, just a straight path to freedom.

"-we can't attack a Schnee mine, not directly. You don't have the manpower!" That's Torchwick's voice. What is he talking about?

Blake shot a longing glance at the door, and then down the hall. More voices floated down, although only Torchwick was loud enough to hear.

She felt two tugging sensations, one towards the exit, and the other towards the door. Freedom was a few short feet away, and whatever plan Torchwick was talking about could be dealt with later.

However, this was the first chance she or any of her team had to figure out what was going on. Adam was planning something, something far sooner than anything that happened originally and they had a duty to stop it.

Blake groaned, and walked down the empty hall.

This had better be worth it.

* * *

After sending Yang and Ruby off in a far too dirty looking taxi, Weiss traveled downtown. Her goal was a small, house-like building, adorned with real, if dead, vines and an overflowing mailbox. The taxi driver had given her a weird look once they arrived, but a small pile of lien convinced him to "forget".

So now, she stood in front of a peeling red door, uncertain exactly _how_ to pull this off. Fighting Grimm, going through paperwork, even tracking down Yang was all something she was familiar with. This, her investigating a lead, acting like a police officer or a private detective, this was new. Some small part of her wondered if she should have a warrant, or if huntresses could even get one.

 _You're wasting time. Just open the door!_

She grabbed the door knob, an old copper model, with dozens of dents and scratches, and turned. It didn't budge. A few kicks proved that it was locked, not jammed, so she only had one option.

SHING!

The aura infused blade cut through the old wood with the ease of cutting water. Twirling Myrtenaster in a circle, Weiss cut out the door knob itself. It fell to the floor, and the door slowly swung open. She stepped inside.

The inside of the building perfectly matched the outside. Cobwebs adorned every surface, and what they didn't touch was wreathed in shadows. Small, golden lights flickered into life, reminding her of Blake's eyes.

Weiss stumbled, her heart rate climbing. She'd been trying to avoid thinking of her abducted teammate, focusing on solving the problem instead, like Ruby had. Because the truth was, she was terrified. Although she had only seen the aftermath, she still remembered Adam's meeting at Beacon. Yang's stump, Blake's disturbing stomach wound, and the friends no one could find…

Now Blake was in that madman's grasp, and Yang was losing it trying to find her. Weiss hadn't known Yang for all that long, (or two years, depending on who you asked) but she had never seen her this focused, this intense, on _anything._ It wasn't the good kind of focus either, but the kind that makes you scribble out random phrases on the walls while doctors shove drugs down your throat.

Something _cracked_ in the darkness. Weiss hoisted her sword in front of her, lamenting her lack of light. With a muttered curse, she pulled out her scroll and held it in her off hand. The screen was a poor substitute for a real flashlight, but it was the best she had.

Unless she didn't mind lighting the whole building on fire.

The floorboards creaked, robbing her of any stealth she may have had. Faded pictures adorned the walls, ghostly eyes staring at her with frozen glares. She supressed a shiver.

The first three doorways she passed were all caved in and broken. The rooms themselves were in slightly better shape, but not by much. Broken furniture, shards of glass, and more dust than a Dust mine were all long-term tenants. The house _looked_ abandoned.

Something told her that was the point.

She nearly missed the fourth door. It was flush against the wall, closed and in one piece. She noticed the small handle on the left side, more specifically; the small spots were there was no dust.

This door had been used, and recently.

Wishing she had the foresight to bring gloves, Weiss grabbed the handle and twisted it. Opening it until she could just see a thin crack of light, she heard muted whispers. Something rattled around, perhaps ammunition. She didn't open the door all the way, not yet.

Backing away from the door, she pocketed her scroll and hoisted Myrtenaster. She idly switched to ice, to avoid damaging the building, but her focus remained on the door. The few noises she had heard had vanished. The room, and the house, was silent.

She stepped forward, hand out, ready to push open the door. Her blade remained high, ready to take out whoever, or whatever was on the other side. If Blake's captors were here, it would undoubtedly be a tough fight.

Weiss took a deep breath. The stale air tasted odd, reminiscent of old paintings.

Go time.

Weiss leapt through the door, slamming it against the wall. Myrtenaster was out in front, ice Dust ready to fire. She snapped her head up, wincing at the sudden light. Her opponents stood in front of her, wide eyed and…

Young.

As in, _really_ young. The oldest she could see could be no more than seven. All of them stared at her, eyes wide in fear. Many clutched teddy bears or blankets, or each other.

Every single one was a faunus. Every, single, one.

Weiss let her sword drop. Her grip remained firm on the handle, but she wasn't going to use it. Her eyes scanned the rest of the room. Bright colours, reds, yellows, and blues, plastered the walls. Hastily cleaned up toys still littered the floor, and she could see paint and honey all other types of sticky liquids stuck to every surface, usually in the form of a handprint.

This… this was a daycare.

CLICK.

Weiss spun around, sword high. The sound was the first _expected_ thing she had encountered, but even it was soon rendered pointless. The gun was there, aimed directly at her head. The shooter was a man, hair white as her own, skin wrinkled and potted. His arms shook, not out of fear or adrenalin, but age. Opening a trembling lip, he spoke.

"Go away," he whispered, his voice just audible in the quiet. "Go away or I'll blow your head off." He jabbed the gun at her. "I mean it!"

"I'm—I'm not…" Weiss stuttered, words turning to mush in her head. "I'm not here to… to _hurt_ anyone."

He suddenly starting wheezing, and it took her a minute to realise he was laughing. " _Not_ hurt us? _Not_ hurt us? That's what you do! That's what you Schnee's all do, isn't it? Take what you want and leave us to pay the price?" He gestured towards the kids, dropping the rifle to his side. "Leave _them_ to pay the price?"

She opened her mouth, but he didn't give her a chance, lifting the gun and pointing it at her. "Now give me one good reason why I shouldn't blow your head off!"

"Because it won't work," Weiss replied, slowly grabbing the barrel and pointing it downwards. "What is this, an Atlesian model?"

He didn't respond at first, instead choosing to glare at her. Finally, with the bare minimum of movement, he said, "Mistralian."

Surprised, she let out a brief chuckle. The gun looked identical to an older Atlas military rifle, even had the same product code. The only explanation was that the weapon was a knock-off.

She didn't tell him that, instead flashing the best smile she could muster. "A Mistral firearm. We're about ten centimetres apart, so that would have a force of… about twenty-thousand newtons."

He stared at her, obviously confused. She supressed a sigh, calling him an idiot would not help. "The gun won't break my aura, even at this range. I'll still be able to fight, and somehow… I doubt you will."

The gun remained… there, until he closed his eyes and dropped his arms. He didn't drop it, but she heard the soft click of the safety being reengaged.

He sat down in an old easy chair, his bones creaking. The kids, apparently taking this as a signal of some sort, began to resume their activities. They all shot her the occasional fearful glance, but Weiss had no idea if that was normal for little kids or not.

Then again, what about this situation was normal? She expected a small supply depot or communication outpost, not a badly battered babysitter.

Turning to the old man, she asked, "What _is_ this place, exactly?" Her request was met with silence. "Excuse me, I'm asking you a question!"

He remained silent. Weiss leaned down, trying to see if he was missing hear aids or the like. A few seconds later, and she had her answer.

 _He was sleeping._

"…Wow." She felt a pang of envy. What she wouldn't give to fall asleep that easily…

Something tugged on her skirt. Weiss snapped her head around, prepared for some guard dog, but instead she found a young girl, no older than three, staring up at her. She had darker skin, as if she was lightly tanned. Her hair was dark, brown or possibly red, with chocolate coloured eyes. On the sides of her head, poking through her hair was two floppy dog ears, the same colour as her eyes.

"Excuse me, miss?" she said, lisping on her S's and E's. Her hand grew more insistent. "I need to use the potty."

Weiss blinked.

…She was _adorable!_

Weiss felt a stupid grin grow on her face. The younger girl shrunk back a bit, although she didn't seem intimidated, just… hurried.

Oh, right.

"I um…" She glanced towards the older man, who was still sleeping. "I don't know where the bathroom is."

One of the older boys pointed behind a bookshelf. He tried to avoid actually looking at her, but she gave him a quick thank you, and dragged the girl down the hidden hallway.

A few minutes later, she found herself waiting outside a bathroom door, feeling distinctly like an intruder. This wasn't really her place, and despite how much she wanted to pick that girl up and snuggle her and buy whatever she wanted and…

Ahem.

The girl came out. "All done!" she cried, throwing up her hands for emphasis.

Weiss, uncertain what the proper protocol was when a three year old used the bathroom, gave her a weak smile.

The girl frowned, and crossed her arms. "You're supposed to give me a sticker."

"I am?"

"Yeah!" She hopped over to her, and grabbed her hand. " Come on! I'll show you where they are!" Weiss allowed herself to be pulled down the hall, and when she got back into the room, most of the kids ignored her. She felt a small headache come on. Wasn't it five minutes ago that they were all staring at her like she was the devil himself?

Now… now they just didn't care. Why would they? She wasn't interfering with their play time, and none of them were really old enough to know what her family had done. So they just… acted like kids. Accepted her, befriended her—err, acquainted her without any expectations or desires.

Ruby would love it here.

The girl opened a drawer marked, "Indi". Presumably, it was hers. She handed Weiss a small sticker book, with dozens of golden stars. A few discolored areas showed where stickers had already been removed.

She pointed towards a star in the left hand corner. Weiss tried to peel the sticker off, but stopped halfway through when she was grabbed by a small hand.

"No! That one!" The girl—Indi, cried; now pointing to a different star. Weiss rolled her eyes, but did as she said. Trying to put it on her hand didn't work, as she constantly moved it out of the way, so Weiss stuck it on her nose.

"Thank you!" she squeaked, and gave her a hug. Weiss froze up, her instincts warring between a desire to run and a desire to cuddle the smaller girl. Before she could make a choice, Indi pulled away.

Smiling, she asked, "What's your name?" In the mind of a three year-old, it was an innocent question. To Weiss, it would decide how the room would see her.

A few clearly knew who she was, and what her family had done to them. However, most had no idea, and even those who did knew only of the generalities. Indeed, it was possible that she hadn't actually been recognised as a "Schnee" yet.

So what would she call herself?

Slowly, she spoke. "Weiss."

Nothing more, nothing less.

Indi grinned wider. "Hello Weiss! My name is Indi!" She spoke slowly, like she was trying to remember how to say each word as she said it. Which she probably was, now that Weiss thought about it.

Weiss stuck out a hand. "Hello Indi. It is very nice to meet you." Inwardly, she cringed. Too formal, too robotic, especially for a three-year old. Maybe. She really didn't know. This was the first person below seven she had ever met.

"Um…" She looked around at the colourful walls. "What exactly are you doing here?"

"Waiting for Mommy."

"Where's is she?"

Indi grew quiet, and leaned in to Weiss's ear. "She's rescuing Daddy. But don't tell anyone!"

Rescuing her father? Why…

Dog ears, White Fang location, cranky caretaker.

This _was_ a daycare, for the White Fang soldiers…

Perhaps she should have guessed such a facility would exist, but Weiss had never thought about the family members of the people she was fighting. Judging from the numbers in here, respectable, but not overflowing, she suspected that it was not common to have children in the group, but it clearly happened.

All these kid's parents, they were the people her team was fighting.

The chair creaked behind her, and she heard the gun being picked up from where it slipped. The old man was awake.

She turned to face him. "I'm…"

"What? Sorry?" he snarled, before devolving into a coughing fit. He took out a bottle of pills, codeine if she was reading the label correctly, and swallowed two.

Weiss cleared her throat. "I'm sorry for disturbing you. I believe I'll be on my way."

He sputtered, nearly spitting out the two pills. "You're going to… leave? Without telling anyone?"

Weiss nodded. "I see nothing wrong here." And she hadn't. The room was in near perfect shape, all the kids were clearly happy, and the old man, for all his faults, was obviously well invested in their safety.

He narrowed his eyes. "How do I know I can trust you?"

Weiss opened her mouth to offer assurances, but paused. The man was deeply suspicious of her, and rightfully so. But he was clearly old school, and there was one thing she knew would convince him.

Raising an arm to her chest, Weiss recited, "I swear, for as long as my soul remains unbroken, my word shall be stronger than steel."

The old man blinked, struggling to keep the shock out of his expression. The oath she had used was an old one, originating prior to the Great War. The intended goal was to somehow bind your aura to your words, in that if you broke your promise, your aura would also break. It was nonsense, of course, but many still took it _very_ seriously.

He gave her a nod, and wordlessly opened the door. Weiss stepped out, baack into the dark, dusty corridor.

Turning around one last time, she saw Indi waving at her, and gave a small wave back. Then the door shut.

Weiss sighed. As… enlightening as that was, it provided no further leads on her friend. She briefly considered the idea that they had some information hidden somewhere, but dismissed it. That would ruin the whole point of keeping them separate from the fighting, after all.

She checked the back of the hallway, and found nothing more than an old, broken bathroom. There was truly nothing left, not even tire tracks she could follow.

Well, hopefully Yang and Ruby had more luck.

* * *

The voices grew louder, both due to her increasing proximity, and the increasingly high tempers of the people within the room. Coming up on the door, she spotted a small table, adorned with a telephone. Scrunching herself up, Blake managed to fit under it's surface, wreathing her in shadows.

Meanwhile, the conversation within the room continued, and now Blake could pick out other distinct voices. Torchwick was still the loudest, the only one she could hear through the door without any muffling. She could also hear Adam, a few people that she didn't recognise, and…

"I can get your photos in about ten minutes." Viola. "Trust me; a two year old could pull this off."

"Then perhaps it's time to break out the diapers and baby formula, because this won't. work." Torchwick, sounding angrier then Blake could ever remember him being. "The whole point of _waiting_ was that all the soldiers would be gone. Even if you get the photos, all your men will be _dead."_

"We have a plan," Adam countered, his voice alone enough to turn Blake's blood cold.

Something tapped, presumably Torchwick's cane. "Oh really? Tell me then, oh 'master planner'. Tell me all."

"Laxatives."

"Excuse me?"

Someone shuffled paper around. "Do you see that? It's a river, supplies all the water for the mine. We'll dump the drugs in at the surface, and then all the soldiers will drink it. We move in, mop up whoever's still standing, and then the mine will be ours."

Viola spoke up. "Won't that affect the workers too?"

"They don't get to drink until later in the day. By then, we'll have our own supplies."

a Torchwick hemmed and hawed, but Blake knew he would agree. The plan would work, and that was all that mattered to him, and to Adam.

She had to get out, find her team, and tell them what she learned. This was big, even without knowing the mine itself. Taking care not to make a single noise, Blake crept out of her hiding spot. She rounded the first corner.

BAM!

Something pink came at her out of nowhere. She stumbled back, dazed. Her assailant didn't let up, landing a series of blows along her arms and legs. Blake soon found herself on the ground, staring at the business end of a very pointy umbrella. Neo's smirking visage filled her view.

Adam and Torchwick came rushing out of the room, Torchwick a hair behind the faunus, and limping, she noted with grim satisfaction.

Torchwick spoke up first. Pointing his cane at her, he said, "What is she doing here?"

Adam, his glower visible even through the mask, replied, "She's _supposed_ to be my prisoner."

Torchwick snorted. "Clearly, since she's two feet away from us _and armed."_ He bent down and picked up her sword, then tossed it to the sides. Then, with a tip of his hat, he said, "Nice work, Neo."

Neo smiled.

Adam pulled out his sword. He circled her, ignoring Torchwick and Neo. "Clearly, keeping you alive was a mistake." He lifted his blade, aiming it at her heart. "One I won't repeat."

Blake knew there was no way out of this. Adam's sword was extremely lethal; odds were it would cut straight through her aura, killing her instantly. Neo's grip was unbreakable, even if she could move with two heavily armed killers standing nearby.

All she could do was summon up what was left of her bravery and spit at her former partner. "Tell Cinder that I'll be waiting for her."

Adam, seconds away from killing her, stopped. He stared at her, his expression showing surprise even through his mask. "How… how do you know that name?"

Neo looked equally as stunned, and when Blake craned her head, she saw Torchwick gawking at her in open shock.

Adam sheathed his sword, pulling her roughly to her feet. He jammed her against the wall, arms held stiffly behind her back.

"How do you know that name!?" he roared, spittle flying into her hair. Despite the question, he never gave her a chance to answer, instead slamming her into the ground. "Fine, don't talk. I'll find out eventually."

"Adam…" Torchwick warned, stepping over to his ally's side. "Forget about it, she's too dangerous. You agreed with me, so Just. Kill. Her."

Adam shook his head. "I can't. I need to know where she found out about that, if we have a leak…"

"Then you have to make an example out of them, I get that. But she is too dangerous, and has too many friends to be left breathing!"

Adam seemingly was about to retort, but was cut off by the sudden appearance of a soldier. "Sir! Got a message from the refueling station. They've been attacked!"

Adam turned on him, growling. Torchwick followed, and with both of her foes distracted, Blake tried to make a run—well, crawl for it, her legs were not really working—and escape. Before she could make an inch, Neo stabbed her hand, the blade punching through to the floor.

"It's like I said, they're coming after _her,"_ Torchwick said, not noticing, or not caring about the "fight" behind him. "And considering how much damage _one_ of those kids did, I don't think you want to be fighting them."

"You're right," Adam agreed, a rare enough action to shock everyone present. His voice suddenly much louder, he barked at the messenger. "Prepare for transport, I want everything packed up in five minutes, we're moving out."

"Yes sir." The messenger turned around, but before he got anywhere, Adam added one final sentence.

"Leave behind a "surprise" for our guests."

"What kind, sir?"

"The lethal kind."

"Understood."


	20. Hunter becomes the prey

The city was alive tonight, lit up like a swarm of fireflies. Yang and Ruby passed several police cars on their way to their destination, all with sirens blaring. Armed officers patrolled the streets, giving their dirty cab wary glances. The radio jabbered on and on about "potential lockdown" and "state of emergency".

Yang knew why. Her battle with the White Fang drew attention, and while the Vale Police department could be slow to wake, once they got going, nothing short of the apocalypse would stop them.

Or elections. Whichever came first.

Yang spent the ride staring at her hands, at the blemish-less skin nearly shining in the sunlight. Ruby's magic healing… thing, had done a pretty good job at patching up the aches, bruises, scratches, drained aura and missing limbs she had suffered.

It did nothing for the sheer _exhaustion_ she felt.

Yang felt tired. Not the kind of tired that could be healed with a good night's sleep, but bone-deep exhaustion that pervaded every cell in her body. She'd spent most of the past twenty-four hours fighting, and now she was going off to fight again. Normally, the thought would be exciting. She was Yang Xiao Long after all, badass huntress always looking for a quick brawl. Now… now she just felt resigned to it. They'd fight someone, probably nearly die, and then they'd fight again.

She lifted her gaze towards Ruby, sitting beside her, toying with the electric windows. Nothing had been said, but Yang could see the same type of tiredness in her. Perhaps not as bad, but still there. Guilt flushed through her. Ruby shouldn't be dealing with this, shouldn't be trying to take out an army of terrorists. She should be at school, talking with friends, studying, all the normal things fifteen year-old's do.

They should all be at school, really. Nothing that happened in the past week or two should have happened. The attack on the school, time travel, almost dying during initiation, Cardin, this. When was it going to stop? When could they be normal people again?

"Yang?" Ruby's voice was full of concern. Yang blinked, trying to shake herself out of her thoughts.

"Yeah?"

"You still okay?"

Not even close.

"I'm fine, Rubes," Yang replied, struggling to keep a tremor out of her voice. She punched the palm of her left hand, although the action lacked any intensity. "Ready to kick the crap out of these assholes?" The swear slipped out, briefly shocking her. Yang knew Ruby wasn't any stranger to less savory vocabulary, spending any time with Qrow would do that to you, but she normally made a better effort at not swearing around her little sister.

Ruby gave her a sad smile.

Yang slumped against the chair, running through another list of insults to hurl at herself. It had grown pretty big by this point.

Ruby's brow creased. "Did we get enough ammo?" She was referring to a brief stop at a Dust shop the trio had made. Yang picked up a few dozen more strips for Ember Celica, enough to (hopefully) last through the week.

"I'm good," Yang replied, holding up her arms for emphasis.

Ruby nodded. Satisfied, she leaned back and closed her eyes. Air barely seemed to leave her lips, and Yang almost wondered if she suffered a heart attack. (Would make as much sense as anything else…)

Their car pulled to a stop. Yang looked out the window, and saw an imposing warehouse, with the window's seemingly blacked out. Small piles of trash littered the ground around it, and a few shabbily dressed figures clung to the dark shadows.

"Nice place."

Ruby paid the driver, and stepped out of the car. Yang got out a few seconds behind her.

"It's… big," Ruby said, awe creeping into her voice. Yang elbowed her shoulder.

"Come on, we need to find a way in."

The main door was out, mostly because neither could lift it. A smaller door off to the side provided an obvious solution, so they immediately assumed it was a trap. Ruby proposed cutting or punching through the wall, but that would most likely just let them know they were coming.

"Why can't there be an air vent?" Ruby muttered. They had circled the building twice now, and there was no sign of any entrance. "All the movies have air vents…"

Yang snorted, and peered in through a window. It lead into a hallway of some sort, although it was too dark to see anything else. She raised a hand to the glass, trying to reduce the glare. The window pushed away from her.

Startled, Yang stepped back. Squinting her eyes, she saw that the window pane was wood, and rotting. A smile came to her lips.

"Found something?" Ruby asked, speeding to her side.

Yang grabbed the soft wood and pulled. "I think I can..." she trailed off, twisting her arms to gain more grip. Planting a foot on the wall, she gave one final tug, and yanked the window out of the wall, splinters falling to the ground. She let the window drop, and hoisted herself over the sill.

Gesturing to her sister, she said, "Come on!" Then dropped into the darkness.

She landed on the linoleum floor with a soft thud. Light streaked in through the new hole, casting her in a small spotlight. Ruby dropped behind her, and she heard the sound of her scythe deploying. Yang kept her gauntlets underplayed for now. They made opening doors difficult.

"You go first," Ruby ordered, slipping into leader mode. "I'll watch our backs."

"Not a problem."

They set off down the empty hallway, eyes scanning for anyone or anything awaiting them in the darkness. Their footsteps echoed through the quiet, making them seem far louder than they were.

"Where is everyone?" Ruby asked, leveling her gun at a corner as they approached it. "I kinda thought we'd be fighting by now."

Yang rounded the corner, deploying Ember Celica. Nothing moved, aside from a few rats. She lowered her arms. "They're probably setting up some kind of trap." Eyeing a closed door, she added, "Watch for anything that looks... explosive."

"And what exactly does 'explosive' look like?"

"I don't know, jackety?"

"What?"

"Don't ask."

She approached the door, keeping her right hand clenched and ready to fire. Her left hand reached for the handle, slow enough that Ruby could set up to her right. Gripping the dented brass knob, she slowly, ever so slowly, turned it.

Nothing happened. The door didn't explode, like she half-expected it too, but neither did it move. She briefly considered punching it down, but that wouldn't be conductive to the "stealth" part of this stealth mission.

Ruby leaned in, silently asking her what was happening.

"It's locked," Yang said in reply.

Ruby sighed, and aimed her rifle down the hall. Wordlessly, Yang took point once more, and the duo continued onwards.

The next corner brought them to a small door. To its right was a table, something small, designed to hold a phone or a vase. On the ground was a small puddle of something... dark.

Ruby shined her scroll on it, turning the dark spot into a familiar dark red. "Is that... blood?"

Yang crouched down, trying to get a closer look. "Looks like it."

It seemed fresh, no more than a few hours old. A few drops were scattered around it, stretching all the way to the wall, where another splotch resided. That one was dry, and much thinner.

Something seemed... odd, about the liquid. Yang, on a whim she couldn't explain, placed the tips of her fingers in the puddle at her feet.

 _Blake._

Suddenly she was standing, struggling to contain a burst of fear and anger. "It's Blake's," she growled, capturing Ruby's attention. "She's here, or was here."

Ruby tilted her head. "How do you know?"

"I just do, alright?" Yang snapped, not wanting, and not able to explain her sudden certainty. "Come on, that can't be more than an hour old. If she's still here..."

Ruby's eyes widened. "Then she's bleeding." Her expression turned into a slab of rock, and she hoisted Crescent Rose in front.

"Let's move."

Yang practically ran down the hall, forgetting about stealth. Ruby suppressed an annoyed huff, and ran after her.

Halfway down the hall, she shot a look behind her, checking if the White Fang had tried to flank them.

Instead, she saw Blake's blood, glowing a soft, yellow shade.

And then it was gone.

Ruby stared at where the puddle had been, mouth hanging open. Her mind raced for explanations, and found none. Well, none that didn't say, "Weird magical healing thingy".

Part of her wanted to stop, and ask Yang what she'd done. Then she remembered where they were.

Slamming her mouth shut, she ran off, intent on catching up with her sister. She found her in the main storage room of the warehouse, stacked high with shipping containers. Most either had bare sides, or SDC logo's. Long fluorescent tubes ran across the ceiling, casting a harsh light that burned into her eyes.

Coming up behind her sister, Ruby tapped her on the shoulder. "Did you find anything?"

Yang didn't respond. In fact, she barely moved. Ruby leaned around her, and what she saw reduced her to a similar state.

Blake, tied to a chair and under a flood light. She was frozen, didn't even seem to be breathing. Ruby felt her own breath hitch, but resisted the urge to rush forward. It seemed too dramatic, too much like a movie. Either Adam was a fan of old spy movies, or this was a trap.

Yang had no such fears, and rushed forward; Ruby grabbed her sister's arm and pulled her back, surprised at the energy in her sister's stride. Twenty minutes ago, she seemed ready to fall over!

"Let, me, Go!" Yang all but yelled, trying to throw Ruby off.

"Something's wrong! We need to wait!"

Yang drew back an arm, and Ruby worried that she was about to hit her. Yang herself seemed unsure.

"I would listen to your little partner there..."

Ruby let go of Yang, and pulled out Crescent Rose. She whipped her head around, searching for the source of the noise.

Yang took the more direct approach. "Get out here!" she yelled. "Come on!"

The voice chuckled. "As you insist."

Two men stepped out from the shadows. Both were armed, and were faunus, but that was where the similarities stopped.

The one on the right wore an intricate Grimm mask, seemingly held in place by two large horns bursting through his hair line. His clothing carried the same style as the White Fang foot soldier, but she could see thick plates of armor underneath every stitch. In his right hand, he carried some kind of chain, with bolts of lightning arcing up and down its length.

On the left stood a far thinner man. He lacked the armor and horns of his partner, but stood several inches taller. His clothing lacked the immediate resemblance to the White Fang's uniform, black leather, with red lines across his chest. His arms were covered in metal and gears, leading to two circular sawblades on the back of his hands.

Horns spread his arms, as if he was inviting them to a banquet. "Welcome to our humble abode." He spoke with the same quiet dignity Ozpin usually used. Soft, yet forceful.

Yang was having none of it, and threw back her arms, cocking a shot. "Move," she growled, her eyes turning red. "Before I turn you into _vegetables."_

Horns smirked. "I suppose you have plenty of practice with that, don't you?"

Yang tried to step forward, but Ruby had regained her grip and wasn't letting go. Instead, she settled for more yelling. "You think you scare me?!"

Horns extended his chain, each link clanking on the cold pavement. Electricity was soon joined by frost, fire, and even an odd purple glow that signified gravity Dust.

Yang finally wrenched her arm free. Both gauntlets at her side, she said, "Still. Not. Scared. Get out of my way."

Horns, clearly the more talkative of the duo, laughed mockingly. "Why, so you can _save_ your precious friend." He pointed towards Blake. "Jay, if you would do the honours.

Jay, apparently the guy with the saws, nodded. Suddenly, he raised his arm, and fired his saw blade at Blake. A cable connected it and his arm, allowing him to steer it closer to her neck.

Her head was sheared off, falling to the floor and bouncing… twice…

What?

"She's—it's plastic," Yang said, somewhat redundantly. Her lips curled into a snarl, and she spat at the two soldiers. Actually spat.

Horns smirked. "Hey, looky here, these two got some fight in them!" His smile turned feral. "Been a long time since we've had that."

Yang roared, and threw herself forward. Horns ducked under her body and wrapped his chain around her torso. He began to spin her around, winding up like he was about to throw a lasso.

Ruby lined up a shot to free her sister, but had to sidestep Jay's blades as they came flying at her. One carved into a shipping container behind her, and she heard his arm brace thingy whirring away, trying to pull it back. The cable connecting him and the blade went taut.

She hooked Crescent Rose onto the stiff cable and spun around, using the gun part of her sniper-scythe to slowly carve it to nothingness. It felt somewhat like being on a roller coaster, only with the knowledge that stopping would most likely mean dying.

Jay realised what she was doing, and seemed to switch gears. His weapon stopped spinning, and then spun the other way. Ruby didn't realise what was going on, until she caught sight of his blade coming straight for her head. Stifling a gasp, she threw herself off the cable, soaring high into the air.

Jay crashed into the cargo container, creating a large dent in its side. Barely slowed, he used his free hand to cut out his other, and then threw the offending metal at her. Milliseconds before it impacted, Ruby spun her scythe to deflect it, firing a shot to push her into the rafters.

Landing on a narrow metal bar, Ruby switched Crescent Rose into sniper mode and took aim at her opponent. Pulling the bolt back, she fired shot after shot, hitting him in the arm and shoulder. Yanking on the trigger one last time, she received only a soft click as the gun ran dry.

Muttering a few unsavory phrases, she fumbled in her pockets for another clip. A blade crashed through the metal beside her, nearly making her fall off. Jay rocketed up, swinging his legs out, and managed to slam into Ruby's stomach. She flew backwards, crashing into a metal beam. Her left arm shot out, barely managing to grab the ledge before she fell.

Crescent Rose was not so lucky, and fell to the floor. Infused with her aura, and already incredibly durable, she knew the blade wouldn't be damaged by the fall. As she hauled herself to her feet and watched Jay grow ever closer, she wondered if that would matter.

* * *

Yang crashed through the metal shipping container, crashing into the far wall, and felt the chain slip away. She crashed onto the ground, and tried to shake a bout of dizziness. Her skin felt like it had just been through a blizzard, volcano, and lightning storm, all at the same time. Her clothing had dozens of cuts, all with smoking black edges.

Horns stepped through the hole she had created and whipped his weapon, cutting a straight line through the metal roof. "Come on! Don't tell me that's it!"

Snarling, Yang glanced at the contents of the container. To her right was a shrink wrapped pallet of rubbing alcohol, generic brand, and extremely flammable. She tore through the plastic, and pulled out two bottles, then chucked them at Horns.

He dodged the first one, and swept aside the other. Before he could say anything, Yang fired a shot at both. They lit up, and burning alcohol and melting plastic splattered him, sticking to his clothes and skin. Some landed in his eyes, and he raised a hand to scratch it out.

Grinning, Yang leapt forward, sinking both fists into his stomach. Caught off guard, he stumbled back, one harm clutching his torso, the other ripping the plastic off his skin. Too bad, she was kinda hoping it would burn through his aura.

And his skin.

Screaming out incomprehensible noises, he whipped the chain at her legs, trying to tangle her in his grasp. She leapt over, and fired her gauntlets behind her, launching her at him like a rocket.

His eyes wide, he narrowly dodged out of her way. Unable to stop, Yang went through the hole and back out into the main room. She skidded on the ground, until she managed to dig her fists into the ground and slow herself.

Shooting her head up, she saw Horns spinning his chain around, level with her neck. Dropping to the ground, she narrowly missed the energy infused chain as it tore through the shipping crate behind her.

A shipping crate with the Schnee Dust Company logo.

…What happened to the days when they were _lucky?_

Red, yellow, green, and every other colour of flames shot out of the container, turning the warehouse rainbow coloured. Yang fired both her gauntlets, desperately trying to escape the blast radius. Horns whipped his chain towards the roof, and pulled himself to safety.

Landing on another container, Yang risked a glance back at the fireball. It was massive, and spreading through the containers. She could feel the heat licking at her skin, any closer, and she wouldn't have to worry about the fire ball.

She spat out a swear. Without several shots from a mortar, her gauntlets lacked the power needed to move her. She needed to get up, away from the flames, but she couldn't jump that high, nor shoot herself.

Her eyes widened, and she pulled out Gambol Shroud. Swinging it like a windmill, she threw it into the metal beams running along the ceiling, the razor-sharp metal cutting in by several inches. She wasn't sure if it had any kind of reeling method, so she started shimmying up the rope.

Just before she reached the top, Horns leaned over the metal beam she was climbing towards. His smirking mouth opened to say something, but Yang shot a round at his head before he could get a breath out. He dodged, jumping back to another beam, but his smirk had turned into a feral snarl.

Yang pulled herself onto the steel supports, the tips of her toes leaning over the edge. Her footing was horrible, and she nearly fell. Shooting out an arm, she managed to grab another support. The metal felt warm to her skin, heated by the flames below.

Horns whipped out his chain, curling it around the beam below her. He pulled, hard, and the beam bent, then gave way. Yang fell, held up only by her grip on the support beam. She swung her other arm up, took hold and swung to the next beam. Horns tried to take it out too, but she was ready for him.

When his chain arced towards her, instead of dodging, she grabbed it. His face turned from anger to surprise, which remained as Yang pulled him towards herself. Thankfully, the beam was wider than the other one, so she didn't lose her balance.

His face careened towards her. She raised a fist and threw it forward, connecting with his nose. Firing a shot, she threw him backwards, and then yanked on the chain again. This time she aimed her blow at the top of his head, and sent him spinning around the beam. Every time he came up, she fired another shot, spinning him faster and faster.

Eventually, he stopped. The chain wrapped itself around the beam, tight enough that Yang could not pull it away. Horns dangled on the other end, roughly two body length's away. He squirmed, trying to free his weapon. In response, she slammed her foot down on the chain, and crouched down.

"I wouldn't move too much!" she yelled glancing down at the multi-coloured display below. "Those flames look hungry!"

Horns ignored her, and tried to lift his legs to the chain. Yang grabbed it and pulled to the side, crashing him into the roof.

Now settled, she pulled him closer. He was still far enough away that he couldn't do anything, but she could see the sweat pouring off his skin.

"Where. Is. Blake?"

Horns laughed.

She let the chain drop, falling nearly three feet before it stopped. Horns didn't scream, but his yelp would live forever in her dreams.

"Tell me, or burn. I'll be happy with either one."

He kept laughing. Tears streaking down his cheeks, he looked down at the fire, and then up at her. "No, no I don't think you will."

She snarled, and leveled her arm at him. " _Do not_ fuck with me. Talk, or I smash this thing." She lifted her free arm to drive the point home, but her stomach twisted at the words. The thought of killing him, even given what he had done…

He grinned. "Oh, wouldn't that be grand?" Plates of metal on his arm rose up.

Then he started falling.

"NO!" Yang screamed, rappelling down the rope to grab him. However, she was too slow, and his body fell into the furious flames far below, the smile never fading from his lips.

"Why… why did you…?" She whispered, unmoving despite the increasing heat. Her left arm dangled, while her right slowly slipped down the chain. The beam above her bent, the support structure failing.

"I didn't… I didn't want…"

Did she?

* * *

Ruby shot over the next saw-blade, feeling the teeth slip her boots. Jay spun around, launching his left arm down at her head. She rolled, going under his blade, and falling off the beam. Kicking in her semblance, she leapt to the floor, landing on a shipping container hard enough to leave a dent.

Glancing upwards, she saw the flames arc out from Yang's location. Her heart stopped, until she saw her sister climbing up and away from the fire. Swallowing, she quickly began to search for her weapon.

Despite what happened on her first day, Ruby knew very well what could happen in a Dust fire. Judging from the colour of the flames, it was most likely going to burn itself out. Still, while it was doing so it would be incredibly hot, and her sweetheart was not designed to withstand those kind of temperatures.

 _Nothing_ was designed to take those temperatures.

A saw-blade buried itself in the metal to her right, cutting a few strands of hair as it went past. Ruby spun, dodging the next one, and jumped to the floor. The concrete felt warm, and the air stifling. Crescent Rose sat less than a foot away.

She heard something crash into the shipping container behind her, and when she turned around, she saw Jay fling both his blades around and at her. Dropping to the ground, she rolled out of the way and towards her scythe.

By now, the flames had spread across the warehouse. Few containers still had Dust in them, but it didn't need much to grow. Looking to her left, she saw a tower of flames, tall enough to nearly reach the ceiling. Her right was a mirror image, although not quite as tall.

Her scythe was almost in reach of her hand, and the flames.

Jay leapt down from the container and crashed behind her. She heard his blades spinning up, the noise becoming louder every second. Kicking in her semblance, she dashed forward, leaving a cloud of petals in his face.

Picking up her scythe, she rammed the blade into the ground and spun around it, until she was facing her opponent. Pulling back on the bolt and mindful of the heat licking at his skin, she fired.

BANG! BANG!

The high-powered sniper rounds tore through the gears and motors powering his blades. They whirred, sputtered, and groaned, then gave up with a puff of smoke. Jay looked down at his hands, tried to pry the bullets out, and then looked up at her.

"Fiddlesticks."

Ruby shot herself forward, slashing her scythe in every direction. Down, up, right, left, block a fist to her right, vault over, keep going.

Jay grabbed her scythe and threw it, and her, high on the shipping containers. She stabbed Crescent Rose into the softer metal and came to a stop, the impact jarring her arms. Down below, she could hear him start to climb up the sides, using his broken blades to cut into the metal.

Sadly for him, a container to their right suddenly erupted into a multi-coloured display of death. It was just far enough away to keep her from becoming Ruby nuggets, but the force it unleashed pushed the stack, and it slowly began to fall down.

Into the fire below.

Her semblance flared into life, a massive cloud of petals providing the only hint of her initial location. On her way by, she grabbed Jay's shoulders and pulled him along. Thankfully, he realised she was his best hope of surviving. Of course, Ruby didn't have the strength to pull him forever.

Pushing her semblance to its limits, she leaped into the air and twisted around his body. Spinning her scythe, she whacked the blunt side against his back, sending him flying through a window.

"Sorry!"

Landing on a melting container, she quickly pointed her scythe behind her and fired, launching herself up to another crate. Barely slowing, she ran off the edge of the crate and jumped at the side of another, running up it and the three stacked above it.

Near the top, she hooked Crescent Rose into the lip of the container and pushed herself upwards, firing a shot to rip the blade out and fling her faster. The air pushing at her hair and cloak, she flew higher and higher, until she was metres away from the metal beams.

Pulling her scythe in front of her, she hooked it onto a beam and spun around it. Metal filings flew off, and the air filled with sparks, a few landing on her skin. Grimacing, she twisted her scythe and landed on the beam, holstering her weapon, and patted out the smoldering spark.

The flames below continued to rage, now having spread to nearly the entire building. Lightbulbs flickered and died, metal beams formally holding up the roof began to crumple, or drip liquid metal. Ruby stared worryingly at the flames, and the lack of any easily accessible windows.

Suddenly, she heard Yang scream, "NO!"

Whipping her head up, Ruby saw her sister, clutching onto a dangling chain, swinging dangerously close to the rainbow of death below. Quickly mapping out a safe path, Ruby ran to her, stopping at the beam where the chain hung.

She tried to pull her up, but without her semblance providing speed, Yang was too heavy for her to budge.

"Move!" she yelled, yet her sister remained.

Pulling out Crescent Rose, she smacked it against the metal bar. Yang shook her head and looked up, her eyes wet at the corners. "Ruby?"

She nodded. "You need to climb! Now!"

Looking down at the encroaching flames, Yang yelped, and started pulling herself up the chain. The beam buckled, prismatic flames lurching up the supports themselves.

Yang saw this as well, and without speaking, she grabbed her around the waist and fired both her gauntlets, sending the two sisters flying upwards. In a single smooth motion, she pulled out Gambol Shroud and threw it towards the ceiling, gripping the ribbon tightly.

"Go go go!" she yelled, lifting Ruby to the ribbon. She grabbed on with both hands and started climbing, and within seconds, Yang started pulling herself up. She had thrown it just next to a window, with blue sky peering through.

The flames had nearly reached them. Yang started pulling the ribbon up behind her, fearing for its safety. The glass was close enough to touch. Ruby threw a fist against its smooth surface, smiling when the glass cracked. With another blow, it shattered, showering the two sisters with a sprinkling of sharp shards.

Ruby threw herself through the now clear window, and gulped in a huge breath of fresh, cool air. Yang landed on the roof beside her, coughing out a lung or two.

Her feet felt heat simmering through the metal roof, so the two dropped off the side of the building and into a small alleyway. Jay was gone, although Ruby could see where he had landed.

Yang bent over, swallowing down every ounce of air she could pull in. "Ruby?"

"Yes?"

She let out another cough. "I don't think they had a license for all that Dust."

Ruby laughed, the tension draining out of her small frame. With a burst of her semblance, she ran to her sister's side and pulled her into a tight hug. Yang shook under her fingers, raspy breaths giving way to calm.

"Um... sis?" Yang said, slowly pushing Ruby away. "You're kinda... glowing."

Ruby spread out her arms and looked down. Sure enough, her aura was lit up, casting the alley in a red light.

Lifting her head to look at Yang, she said, "So are you." Yang's body was draped in her own aura, although it seemed... darker.

Probably just the lighting.

Probably.

An angry and very familiar voice called out from the street. "What did you two do?"

Ruby turned around, and saw Weiss, staring at them with her hands on her hips. Her face was in a perfect state of incredulous exasperation, but the way her eyes lingered on each blackened patch on their clothing exposed how worried she really was.

"I leave you alone for an hour, and what do you do?" She threw an arm out to gesture towards the building. "You nearly destroy—"

The roof of the warehouse caved in, followed by the walls. Bright flames peeked through cracks, but the lack of further ignition was clearly beginning to kill the fire.

" _—completely_ destroy a building!" she corrected, her eyebrow's twitching. Sighing, she continued in a much softer voice. "Please tell me you found something."

Yang's good mood vanished, and Ruby expected her to start yelling again. Instead, she stared into the burned out building, a confused look on her face.

"No," she said, her voice quiet. "No, she wasn't here."

Weiss slumped. "Fantastic. The other place was a bust as well."

Ruby stared at both her partners. "But that means..." Her head lowered. "We don't have any more leads..."

Neither of her teammates contradicted her.

Defeated, the trio left the alleyway with their heads low, and their spirits lower. Ruby didn't think it was possible for thing to get any worse.

The moment they came out onto the street, five, eight, no, _ten_ police cars pulled up in front of them. Armed and armored officers flooded out, all wielding grenade launchers and high-powered rifles. One pulled out a megaphone.

"DOWN ON THE GROUND, NOW!" he yelled, the noise deafening. Ruby stepped forward and held out her hands.

"We're not the bad-guys!" she yelled, her voice barely legible under the cacophony of sirens. They responded immediately, raising every gun they had and pointing them towards her.

"I SAID ON THE GROUND!"

"No! Please, you have to listen to me!" Ruby pleaded. She didn't dare move, but Yang behind her stepped forward; her gauntlets deployed, and threw an arm in front of her.

"Any of you shoot, and I'm knocking you into the next century!" she warned, her eyes stop sign red. A few officers glanced at each other, their hands shaking perhaps the tiniest bit more, but none moved their guns.

Ruby lowered her arms. "Guys, just do what they say."

Yang turned to her. "But _—_!"

"Just do it."Ruby slowly lowered herself to her stomach, taking care not to make any fast movements. Weiss copied her, and Yang, after a few seconds hesitation, followed along.

The officer with the megaphone nodded, and a few officers walked up, keeping their guns trained on them. They pulled their weapons off their bodies, and threw them on the ground in a haphazard pile.

"Hey! Watch what you're doing!" Weiss yelled, earning a gun barrel to her head. Undaunted, she lifted her head to stare him in the eyes. "Go ahead, shoot a Schnee. See what that gets you."

The officer didn't verbally react, but pulled the gun away. Ruby was pulled to her feet by rough hands, cuffed, and led over to the back of a police cruiser. Just before she was pushed in, she saw her sister and her partner in similar situations. The police officer holding her pushed harder, forcing her to take a seat.

The inside of the cruiser was clean, with fairly new leather seats. It smelt vaguely of lemons, and seemed freshly cleaned. Ruby tried to pull her hands apart, and got a small shock for her trouble. Twisting the cuffs, she read the embossed letters on the metal surface.

 _Aura resistant._

Immediately, she understood what the shock was for. For most aura users, it would break their concentration, and make it difficult to use their aura. Ingenious, in a way.

Less so when it was used against her.

Ruby leaned her head back, resting it against the cool surface of the police cruiser. She closed her eyes, trying to block out her current situation.

It wasn't working.

An officer stepped into the driver seat and closed the door. The car rumbled to life, and drove away from the burning building. Behind them was Yang and Weiss's cars, along with a steady line of firefighters.

Leaning forward, Ruby asked, "What's going to happen to us?"

The officer turned on the windshield wipers, barely glancing at her. "Depends on what you say."

Ruby swallowed.

* * *

Barry leaned his gun against a small tree, raising a hand to wipe away the sweat on his brow. His pack's straps dug into his shoulder, but he knew that adjusting them would be pointless.

His partner, a small wisp of a woman, armed with a silenced pistol, came to a stop beside him and raised her weapon. Her eyes glowed in the deep darkness of the night.

He tapped her shoulder. When she turned to him, he said, "Forget it, I'm just resting."

She rolled her eyes. "Of course you are."

"Hey, this craps heavy."

She rose up, meeting him in the eye. Her gun remained firm in her hands, and he could swear she was pointing it at his crotch. "You ready to go?"

He nodded, and she set off into the bush. Within seconds, Barry lost her. He felt a stab of annoyance, but it was ultimately a good thing. If he couldn't see her, odds were their enemies couldn't either.

A quick check of his scroll gave him an idea of how much farther was left. Groaning, he picked up his rifle and set off.

The forest was alien to him, having spent most of his life in Vale. The sounds of squirrels and owls freaked him out almost as much as the Grimm, and kept his gun pointed firmly in front.

Far, far too much time passed before he arrived at the river. Frothy water bubbled over stones, before leading into a small crack in the ground.

His partner appeared next to him. "This is the place," she said, sling her gun onto her back. "Let's get that sucker off you."

Barry pulled his pack off, gently setting it on the ground. Opening the canvas flap, he pulled out a large, clear jug, with milky liquid sloshing within.

Lifting it upwards, he stared into the river. "So… I just pour it in?"

His partner nodded. "Yep. By the time it gets inside, it'll have mixed in."

"Alright then, wish me luck," he finished cheekily, and then began to pour the liquid into the river. Bubbles rose to the surface, and the water was briefly covered with a layer of foam.

Setting the jug down on the grass, he turned to his partner. "So what now?"

"Now…" She smiled, and stared at the moon.

"Now, we wait."


	21. Darkest before dawn

It was time.

Cold air bit into his skin, the night growing cold and dark. Animals quieted, save for the few that could fly, or was otherwise safe against the rampaging Grimm. Moonlight filtered through the canopy, providing the sole source of light for Adam and his followers. He could hear the gentle murmurs and shuffling of an army behind him, all ready to fight and die on his command. A smile came to his lips. This was what he dreamed of, fought for, and bled for.

Turning around, he raised a black gloved hand. Every soldier in the clearing stopped what they were doing, and turned to him, an identical sea of masked faces. A few kept their eyes outwards, ensuring that they wouldn't suffer any surprises. Clearing his throat, Adam began to speak.

"Today, my brothers, my sisters, we strike at the heart of our enemies! The Schnee's use our fellow faunus like slaves, forcing them to work without pay, and without mercy!" He pulled out his sword. "Today! We will give them our pain! We will carve out our justice from their flesh, and show them who! We! Are!" He finished with a cheer, holding up his weapon. The crowd mirrored his movements, lifting swords and guns in celebration.

They began to move out, packing up with practised ease. Fires were put out, tents packed, and the few wounded (two sprained ankles, and the idiot who drank from the poisoned water) were set on stretchers. Adam walked down the small hill he had made his speech on, and up to Blake's jail cell, a thick tent with plastic windows. Two guards, the only people in the camp not moving, flanked the two flaps that served as the door. Both were some of his top men, trusted beyond anyone else.

Except for his Viola.

Giving them both a brief glance, he stepped inside, the two flaps closing behind him. His eyes took a moment to adjust, the darkness intense, even for a faunus. When it did, he saw Blake's prone form, tied up in enough cables to stop a train. An unsuppressed smile grew on his face. All these years, after everything she'd done… he had her.

Nowhere to left for her to run.

He walked over to her, and crouched down by her head. Her arms and legs were both tied, and a gag crossed her mouth. There was no possible way for her to escape, or do anything but turn two terrified eyes towards his. He grinned.

"Hello Blake," he cooed, placing a hand on her cheek. Her nose blew open as she tried to draw in more air, and her skin turned hot and wet. "You ready to talk?" She squirmed under his fingers, trying to escape, or perhaps simply to show her displeasure. He silenced her with a kick to the stomach, relishing the pain as his toe connected with the metal cables.

"I'm not. I'm not even close to ready." He kicked her again, this time in her chest. She closed her eyes, tears welling the corner. Adam felt a tidal wave of disgust rise within him, spilling out through his mouth.

"So this is what you've turned in to, is it?" he roared, smashing a boot into her head, watching the rubber sole come away red. Her head wasn't caved in, much to his displeasure, only a thin cut where the binding had dug in. "A pathetic excuse for a warrior, writhing on the floor, crying!"

Words failed him as he continued to wail away on the girl below him. There was no questions, no attempt at communication. Just raw, inhuman rage, expressed in its most pure form. Every blow relieved an urge he never realised he had, making his body feel lighter, more free. One of his feet hit her in the mouth, ripping through the relatively thin cloth. She spat it out.

"Why?" she asked, her voice barely audible. Adam stopped, his foot hovering over her nose. He bent down; close enough to feel her breath as it sped up. Her eyes darted to his mask, the red seemingly glowing in the darkness. His lips slowly parted.

"Because you _destroyed_ me." He stood up, and then pulled out a small roll of fabric he kept on hand for emergencies, and tied it around her head, blocking her mouth. "I'm just paying back a debt." He walked to the door, and threw the two flaps to the side. Glancing back, he saw her amber eyes staring at him, wide and… confused? He gritted his teeth. "Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about!" He nearly stomped over, to deliver some "reminders", when he felt a tap on his shoulder. .

"Sir?" one of the guards said, jerking his head towards the main camp. "Torchwick wants to speak with you."

Adam bit out a growl. Leaving the tent, he zipped up the two flaps, nearly ripping the zipper off. Both the guards hung back, pointedly keeping their stares pointed elsewhere. His hands were shaking, and he realised just how much Blake's continued defiance was messing with his mind. He let out a slow, heavy sigh, regaining some measure of calm.

"Where is he?"

The guard gestured towards a small tent, the only one still standing. "Over there."

"I'm on my way."

* * *

"Torchwick," Adam said as he entered the tent. It was slightly smaller than Blake's impromptu jail cell, although perhaps that was simply the two cots, bookshelf, and large table with a map of Vale than anything else. The man himself stood at the other end of said table, right next to his diminutive bodyguard. When he heard his voice, he smirked and lifted his cane.

"Good evening, Mr. Taurus." He pointed his hand towards him, his palm upwards. "Now say, 'Good evening, Mr. Torchwick."

Adam crossed his arms, not-to-subtlety letting his sword swing out. "What do you want?"

Torchwick sighed, shaking his head and muttering, "Kids these days, no respect." Slightly jutting out his chest, he continued, "Our little business venture here, well, I don't believe you can pull it off."

"You little—!"

He held up a finger. " _Alone_. You can't pull it off alone."

Adam closed his eyes, resisting an urge to strangle the man in front of him. His pink and brown coloured bodyguard watched him with a focused glare. "Fine, what do you suggest?"

"Well…" He twirled his cane around, stopping it so it pointed at the girl. "Neo here volunteered herself as a… consultant." He grinned, and rested his cane on the ground.

Adam took in the small girl with a practised eye. Her outfit was frilly, and overly complex, but no more than most huntresses or huntsmen. She held an umbrella in her left arm, nestled against her body. Her eyes were pink and brown, switching when she blinked. It was… somewhat disorienting. Her lips were curved in a mild smirk, and despite her small stature, she looked at him like he was a small bug. Adam curled his fingers into fists, a small growl leaking out of his throat.

"This is it?" he said, turning his head to Torchwick. "This is your 'help'?" He pointed towards Neo. "A tiny little girl, armed with an umbrella?"

In reply, Torchwick only smirked. Adam frowned, and turned to leave. Before he could take a step, he felt something pull on the back of his neck. Suddenly, he was on the table, his arms twisted behind his back. A weight pushed down on him, not large, and under normal circumstances, he could easily throw it off. However, his arms refused to budge, to the point where he felt pins and needles. Craning his neck, he managed to catch a glimpse of Neo's smirking face, her legs dangling over his back, and her umbrella, unfolded, sitting peacefully on her left shoulder.

Torchwick laughed. "Little girl, huh?" He leaned in, right next to his face. "Believe me, she's as much a 'little girl' as you are."

Adam jerked, trying to break free. Pain shot through his shoulders, eliciting a small gasp. Torchwick stepped away. "Alright Neo, I think he got the message."

Neo grinned, and stepped off. Adam pushed himself to his feet, rolling his shoulders to regain feeling in his arms. A snarl settled on his face, and he turned to Torchwick with a start. He felt a small amount of satisfaction at the way he flinched.

"Get her to the front lines," he said, jerking his thumb out the doors. "You cover the back. Think you can do that?"

Torchwick set his lips in a hard line, all jokes forgotten. "I'll get it done," he said, walking over to his cot. Shooting a quick glance at Adam, he crouched down, and pulled out a wooden box, a small, complicated-looking lock on the lid. He pulled out a key from the folds of his coat, and stuck it in. Lifting the lid upwards, he pulled out a small bag, made of red silk.

"Been a loooong time since I've used these," he said with a chuckle, before tossing it in to his coat pocket. Standing up with a slight twirl of his cane, he walked to the door, Neo following behind him. "Off to work we go..."

Adam glared at his back until he left the tent, then spit on the ground once they left. Neo managed to hurt his jaw during her demonstration, and his teeth felt loose. He raised a hand to his cheek, and then pulled away, grimacing at the slight prick of pain. She left a bruise too.

Gritting his teeth, he walked out through the tent doors. Two soldiers, waiting for him to leave, moved in to tear it down. He let them do their work, and set out to meet up with the rest of the men. He was behind now; very little of the camp was still standing. Most of the men had gone ahead, preparing for the assault. He set off at a brisk walk, hoping to catch up.

* * *

Ruby stepped into the small room, feeling the stale, chilly air wash over her skin. The harsh light from the single bulb burned her eyes, and forced her to squint. Her ragged breath was absorbed by the thick black walls, turning a simple room into a prison, stronger than any bars. In the middle of the room was a small table, with two chairs on either end. She ran a hand over its surface, felt the grainy plastic and the occasional crack. There was a mirror in the wall, showing her pale reflection.

Sighing, she took a seat. The folding chair creaked and groaned, and she felt the plastic bend under her weight, but it held. It did its job.

Not like her.

For a long while, nothing happened. Ruby sat there, her steady breathing the only sign she was alive, thinking. Her fingers curled into fists, gripped the side of her chair, or examined the many cuts and burns her poor combat skirt had suffered. She couldn't relax, of course. Her sweetheart was sitting in police custody, no doubt manhandled by those who did not understand her, Yang and Weiss were gone, most likely sitting in room similar to this one, and Blake…

Ruby stifled a cry. Tears filled her eyes, threatening to fall. Blake was still missing, still in the hands of a crazy psychopath who wanted her dead. They had no more leads, no more ideas, and even if they did, the police would never let them find her. She considered the idea of telling the police about her teammates kidnapping, but Yang's warning cut that idea off. If they went after the White Fang, Blake would wind up dead, killed once she grew too dangerous to keep. If anyone could save her, it was her team.

The same team trapped in a police station.

The door silently opened. Ruby caught a glimpse of the rest of the station, full of people going about their day. She could see the sun through a window, not quite setting, but clearly considering it. Straightening her shoulders, she looked at the man who stepped through.

He was tall. Not as tall as some of her teachers, or Yatsuhashi, but he still towered above her. His skin was lightly coloured, like he spent most of his time indoors, hunched over a computer screen. His hair was dark brown, shiny, and brushed back, keeping it out of his eyes. He pulled off a dark brown trench coat, revealing a similarly coloured version of the outfit she had seen detectives wear. He stuck out a hand.

"Detective Murrey," he said. His voice was… nondescript, if a bit gravelly. "I understand you've found yourself in some trouble?"

Ruby narrowed her eyes. He seemed friendly, open, trustworthy, but then again, so had Cinder. She didn't take the hand.

Murrey lowered his hand and sat down, pulling out a manila folder. He slid it across the table, the noise vaguely grating to her ears. With a polite smile, he said, "You've had a busy week, haven't you?"

Ruby exercised her right to remain silent.

"Alright, you don't have to talk. I won't force you." He pointed towards the mirror. "My friends out there, on the other hand... well, it's getting late, and none of them have had enough coffee."

"You're not..."

His smile grew tighter. "No, I'm not that kind of cop, and never will be. My point is, Miss Rose, is that you, and your friends, have made a bit of a mess."

Ruby looked downwards, entwining her hands.

"Right now, we've found two bodies, both at crime scenes where you, or your teammates, have been spotted. I'm not saying you killed them, but we need to know what happened," he continued, placing photos in front of her. Each showed a body, sometimes the huntsman from the embassy, sometimes someone else. Someone burned to ash.

Except for the eyes.

She closed her eyes, trying to will the images away, but they didn't leave. Their eyes stayed in her mind, staring at her, taunting her.

 _"I wouldn't be there if it wasn't for you!"_

 _"Some huntress."_

 _"I was just doing my job!"_

 _"This is your fault!"_

 _"You did this!"_

 _"You promised you'd save me."_

Her eyes shot open, and she realised her hands were carving dents into the table. Murrey was staring at her, eyes switching between her face and her hands. Something hot fell on her arms. They were tears.

"I want my dad," Ruby said, her voice breaking on the first word. "I'm not supposed to be questioned without him, right? I'm fifteen, that's... that's too young, right?"

Murrey nodded. "O-of course." He coughed. "I'll get into contact with your dad." He got up and pushed the chair in. Ruby swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. Murrey's stare lingered on her for a few seconds, and then he turned and opened the door. Giving her one last sad glance, he sighed, and walked out. The door swung shut behind him.

Ruby let out a sigh, lowering her head to the table. Its cool surface absorbed some of her skin's warmth, gradually making her feel a little less panicked.

Time slipped by, hours turning into minutes, until she felt nothing.

* * *

Yang burst through the steel doors, her hair a wild mess. Her crimson eyes flitted between each corner, searching for anything moving. Darkness was then only thing she could see, broken up with the rare flashes of red, green, or blue metal. Sweat slicked every inch of her skin, and she felt feverish to the touch. Cuts and bruises dotted her skin, like some disturbed boy's voodoo doll. Her heart roared in her ears, deafening her to the sound of anything else.

Anything except her screams.

Her legs were little more than blocks of lead, but she managed to raise them and start running towards the sound. Colours flashed by, yellow and greys, but mostly red. Dark, dark red, splashed on the walls in thick, seeping puddles. Her gauntlets sat on her wrists, broken beyond repair, gleaming in the dark. The only source of light was her semblance, burning with the light of a thousand stars.

Rounding a corner, she found herself face to face with another White Fang soldier. His mask was coated with blood, fat drops falling off and spreading across the floor. Lying in front of him was a mangled corpse, so heavily beaten that it took her a minute to recognise the red cloak and rose emblem. She felt her fire rise, burning through her skin.

 _"Why weren't you here?"_ He said, pulling a gory mace out of her sister's head. His voice was distorted, like it was being sped down, but it sounded familiar somehow.

Yang leapt forward, tackling the man to the ground, and started smashing his face in. Every blow splattered blood across her arms and face, his or hers, she wasn't sure. He didn't fight back, didn't try to push her off, just laid there, and took the beating. His nose crumpled, caved in to the point where it became unrecognisable. A two-handed blow caved in the side of his head, and his jaw hung limply from his face. Her shirt was drenched with blood, soaking through to her skin.

She kept hitting him.

His head was little more than a smashed watermelon now, only the vaguest hints of the skull left behind. His jaw was holding on only by a thread, yet he managed to turn his head to face hers.

 _"Why couldn't you save me?"_

Yang let out a roar, and smashed both her hands into his forehead. Bone, already weakened from her earlier attacks, gave way, and her fist crashed into his skull. Something jelly like oozed around her fingers and under her nails, squeezing into every line and crack in her skin. She pulled her arms out, now covered in grey goo. Her breath sped up, bringing the smell of the corpse below her.

More screams sounded out. Yang shot her head up, staring into the darkness, and with one final glance at the broken body, stood up and started running.

Every step echoed through her ears. The ground turned grassy as she burst through two double doors, and she nearly tripped on a small pile of rubble. Around her was bright, rainbow flames, steadily moving closer. Above the flames were buildings, tall and barely visible. She caned her neck, searching for the source of the screams. A gasp tumbled from her throat.

There, kneeling in the middle of the field was Blake. Her clothes were matted with blood, trickling out of cuts across her entire body. She tried to open her eyes, but the left one was sealed shut, swollen and purple. Her hair was badly burned, with spots that showed her skin. She flicked her left ear, unable to move the other as it was gone. Standing above her was... was...

Her, grinning like a madman, her hands soaked with blood and something unidentifiable. She lifted her head, shot her a terrifying familiar grin, her teeth peeking out between her lips, and spoke," Yang."

She stumbled back, wide eyes and half delirious. This... this wasn't right...

Her, the other her, lifted up a fist. Her gauntlet, although coated in dried blood, was still functional. She fired a shot into Blake's chest, spattering blood across the grassy field.

"NO!" Yang yelled, trying to run towards her partner, and her killer. Her legs wouldn't move, and when she looked down, she saw cables wrapping around them, and into the ground. She lifted her head, staring at her doppelganger.

"Yang," she said, lifting up an arm. Her hand opened, showing a small pool of blood. She curled her finger, gesturing for her to come forward.

"Yang, Wake up."

Her eyes flew open, her arms slamming into someone's body. The impact jarred her shoulders, too hard for a Grimm or normal person. That meant aura. She rolled off the bed, her arms attempting to activate her gauntlets. Of course, she didn't have them. The police had taken them. The wood bench behind her could work in a pinch, if she could pry the bolts off. Bars running across the eastern wall could be used as a bludgeon, but they were most likely reinforced. An excess of dust littered every surface, useful for blinding her enemy, but little more. Weiss stood in the far corner, her eyes wide and fearful, and a hand covering her mouth. Yang wasn't sure how useful she'd be in a fight without her rapier.

The person she hit, a man, stood up, rubbing the side of his stomach. He raised his head, staring at her, with wide, familiar eyes. Blond, short hair rested on his head, mirrored with a thin patch on his chin. Burns ran up his arms, spreading onto his chest. Yang felt a surge of shock. She knew this guy, very, very well.

"Dad!" she yelled, dropping her arms. He nodded, an easy grin coming to his face.

"Hey Yang," he said, wincing. "Guess I shouldn't surprise you anymore, huh?" There was a noticeable wheeze to his voice, a tightness to every breath. Guilt settled in her stomach, pulling down the corners of her lips. Dad took notice, and pulled her into a hug. "It's okay… I'm fine."

Tears fell from her eyes, landing on her dads shoulder. Yang pulled him in tighter, eliciting another wince. His warmth gently eased her shoulders, reminding her of beautiful days spent at home. His hand patted her hair, running down it and to the base of her spine.

"It's okay… I've got you…"

* * *

Taiyang stood in Ozpin's elevator, staring at his weary face in the reflective walls. Beneath his eyes were the beginnings of two identical bags, born from a lack of sleep and general exhaustion. He pushed his hands against the wall, letting his head sink against it.

What a mess.

It had taken him an hour or two to get his little girls out of the police station, and a few calls to Ozpin. Afterwords, he had driven them back to Beacon, none of the three acting very energetic. Weiss responded when he asked her what happened, but she spoke in clipped sentences, almost like she was afraid of divulging too much. Ruby was nearly dead to the world, slipping in and out of consciousness. Yang… Yang spent the entire drive staring out the window, refusing to respond. Or perhaps unable to respond. Still, between Weiss and Ruby during her rare bouts of lucidness, he managed to get a pretty good idea of what happened.

Which was why he was in the elevator, watching the numbers tick by as it crawled upwards. Worry for the girls mixed with sheer, unending rage towards the man above. His teeth were sore from how tightly he clenched his jaw, supressing the urge to start punching things. He had a much better grip on his temper than his eldest daughter, but there was no denying that they shared it. Even the other teachers, badass as they were, stayed clear. Papa Tai was on the hunt, and no one wanted to get in his way.

Finally, the door slid open. Taiyang stepped through, his arms straight as rulers. Ozpin sat at his desk, gripping a coffee mug like it might disappear at any moment, and staring down at his desk. He could videos playing across its surface, most of them displaying the White Fang. A few had recognisable glimpses of yellow and black hair.

"Taiyang," he said, standing up. Drops of coffee spilled out of his mug,s plunking on the floor. Shock showed through his face, before a mask of practised patience came on. He stuck out a hand. "It's good to see you back."

Taiyang didn't take it, instead crossing his arms. "Don't give me that shit. You know why I'm here."

Ozpin dropped his arm, and set down his cup. "Yes, I do." A hard breath fell from his lips. When he grabbed his cane, his arm was visibly shaking. "I'm…"

"What, sorry?" Taiyang walked over to his side, his teeth showing between his lips. " _Sorry_ isn't what you promised me when I left!" He pointed at Ozpin. "You said they'd be safe! Well guess what?" He spread out his arms. "This sure as hell isn't _safe!"_

Ozpin looked down, unable to meet Taiyang's eyes. His grip on his cane grew tighter, and his voice sounded little like the normal tone he used when he spoke, "I know. I didn't… I wasn't aware this would happen."

"Of course you weren't," Taiyang spat, his voice turning venomous. "No one ever plans for this. Except you." His breathing was far faster now, and he tried hard to clamp down on his raging emotions. Ozpin glanced at him, and then walked away, towards the window. He stared out into the city below, and then closed his eyes.

Taiyang huffed, and started walking towards the elevator. "I'm going to find Blake. Help me, or don't. I really don't care."

His finger was on the button when Ozpin spoke, "We both know that's a bad idea." Anger surged up, and he wheeled to face the older man, now standing at the foot of his chair.

"A bad idea?" he said, stomping over to his desk and slamming his hands against the glass surface. "A bad, idea? Do you know what a bad idea is?" He leaned in. "It's letting her stay with those… people, although I loath to call them that. That's a bad idea!"

Ozpin didn't twitch. "You've studied hostage situations, even if that was many years ago. You have to know what will most likely happen if you move in now."

"I can't do nothing!"Taiyang yelled, all his emotions coming to the surface. Rage and fear showed clearly threw every twitch of his fingers, through every breath he took. "You don't know these people like do; don't know they did to her."

Ozpin raised a brow. "I'm well aware of their record."

Taiyang snorted, and shook his head. "Really? You know their record, huh?" He lifted his eyes, blue boring straight into brown. "Do you know about the time she couldn't go to a friend's sixteenth birthday party, because she broke his brother's hand when he snuck up on her? Do you know that she had a panic attack the first time I hugged her, because she had no idea what it was? Do you about the time she woke up in the middle of the night, coated in sweat and seeing monsters in the shadows, because she dreamt that _he_ sent assassins after her? Do you know I spent all night, trying to comfort her, to convince that she was safe, even though we both knew she wasn't?"

By now his voice was breaking, sobs threatening to break through and consume him. These were old memories he drug up, of dark times and darker events. No one in the family liked to remember them. It was a struggle to get the next words out.

"Do you, Ozpin?"

He didn't have an answer.

Taiyang sighed, and stepped away from the desk. Fresh tears rolled down his cheeks, each drop splashing on the floor. He turned away, walking back towards the elevator. He punched in the number for ground level.

"Give me a few days," Ozpin said. "Enough time to figure out a plan of attack. That's all I'm asking."

Taiyang rested a hand on the door frame, the elevator door opening. Slowly, he turned his neck, and saw Opzin staring at him, coffee forgotten, and the closest thing to a pleading expression the man had plastered on his face. He let out a sigh. "Fine. Two days. After that, we won't have any other option." He stepped into the elevator, and closed the door.

Ozpin sighed, and leaned back against his desk. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his scroll and dialed the first number on his contact list. It rang several times, but no one picked up. Scowling, he threw it on his desk.

"Where are you Qrow?"

* * *

The dorm room had never felt so empty.

It lacked its normal sounds of gentle breathing, ruffling pages, small talk, and other noises that usually permeated RWBY's dorm and it made Weiss's skin crawl. She was lying on her bed, the normally soft and cool sheets feeling scratchy and hot. Perhaps that was simply her clothing, still on, and still clean, the only article her team had worn that was. Ruby had dumped off her combat skirt in the garbage, the holes already growing bigger simply from the act of walking. She pulled on a similar copy, and then claimed she was going running. Weiss saw her sitting on a bench outside their window.

Yang had also disposed of her outfit, but instead switched to a simple grey t-shirt and baggy sweatpants. They did little to hide her figure, but it was such an odd choice by the normally boisterous bruiser that Weiss couldn't help but stare. (Out of concern, mind you) Part of her kept expecting Yang to realise she was being watched, and bust out some inane pun, or start posing, but neither happened. She simply laid on Blake's bed, and stared at her own, her chest barely moving. It was somewhat creepy.

Not that Weiss was doing much better. She had tried to study, but concentrating on ancient history and tactics was nearly impossible without Blake next to her, pointing out tiny, minute details she never would have found. Weapon maintenance took minutes, so that left her with a sizable pile of books.

She made it three pages before she had to close the book, unable to see through the tears pooling in her eyes.

Briefly, she considered joining Ruby on her "run", but she wished to forget about Blake's absence, not constantly be reminded of it. She let out a sigh and gripped the side of the bed, pulling herself upright. Sitting here doing nothing was certainly not conductive to her mental state. Her feet swung past the edges of the bed, and she lowered them to the floor. Yang's gaze didn't move.

Weiss spotted Ember Celica sitting on the bedside table, and an idea struck her. Walking over, she grabbed a few of the ammo strips sitting next to it, testing the weight in her hand. Each "shell" seemed to be a pure fire Dust cartridge, surprisingly high grade, with detonator Dust controlling the reaction. A standard setup, although certainly better crafted than most. Should be easy for her to modify.

She turned to Yang. "Would you mind if I took these off your hands?" she said, lifting two strips. Yang didn't respond; her eyes remaining locked on the bed above her. Weiss frowned, concern overriding any annoyance at the action. She lowered her hand. "Yang?"

Suddenly, the brawler shook her head, hair flipping around her as if it was in blender. Her eyes locked on to Weiss, taking a few seconds to focus on her. "Huh?"

Weiss again raised the ammo strip. "I was asking if I could… modify these. Add some new effects," she explained. Yang's eyes glazed over, and turned them back towards the bed.

"Sure, whatever."

"Are you sure? I mean, it's not that big of deal if you aren't."

"I said it was fine!" Yang shot upwards, her fists slamming into the bed. The impact shook the entire frame, nearly causing it to fall apart. "Go away!"

Weiss stumbled back, taken off guard by Yang's reaction. Gathering the ammo, and a supply of Dust, she opened the door, taking care not to open it too quickly. Casting a quick glance back at her teammate, she saw Yang had resumed her earlier position, only now there were tears in her eyes, trailing down her cheeks. Weiss frowned, and slowly closed the door.

On the other side, she let out an exhausted sigh. Her hands were shaking, curling into and out of fists without conscious thought. She squeezed her eyes shut and grinded her teeth together, trying to gain control of the turbulent emotions raging inside of her. Normally, she'd simply take a deep breath and that was that, but today… today, that wasn't working. No measure of calm, real or faked, came to her.

"Come on Weiss, you're a Schnee! Act like it," she whispered to herself, and if she could focus on that idea, being a Schnee, she could do it. Wrest the storm within herself; keep the thoughts of Blake and Ruby away—

There it went. She groaned, raising both her hands to cover her face. Why was she acting like this? It wasn't the first time someone close to her had been kidnapped by the White Fang, or worse. Not even close. It was practically a bi-yearly event. So why was it affecting her so badly? Why did every time she thought of Blake, trapped and alone, turn her stomach into a roiling sea, ruining her appetite and slowly driving her insane?

CRASH!

Something glass broke behind her, and she heard Yang, stumbling around the room, a rampaging Grimm trapped in a tight space. She heard thuds as her fists hit the wall and crashes when they broke through. Her hand went to the door, but she held back. Yang wanted to be alone, and her jumping in would most likely make her angrier.

And, she noted with a hint of guilt, there was no guarantee she wouldn't decide she was a better target than the wall.

Letting out a quiet breath, she ran her hand down the grain of the door. She closed her eyes, and then turned around and left, Yang's ammo tucked under her free arm.

The crashes followed her through the hall.

* * *

The sun was beautiful.

Ruby stared at it from the bench, swinging her feet in time with some invisible rhythm. A cool breeze wafted through her hair, making it stick against her face. Her hand gripped the underside of the bench, as if it was the only thing holding her up. Her back rested against the cold wood, her cloak warming it and keeping her from getting chilled. Squirrels chattered in the trees, birds sang, and Grimm roared. A normal spring evening.

It was far better than she deserved.

A twig cracked behind her. Faster than a bullet, she jumped to the top of the bench, Crescent Rose unfolded and in her hands. She pointed the barrel at the noise, her finger brushing against the trigger. A blond man, shorter than her father, quickly raised his hands, eyes wide with fear. He didn't dare breathe, didn't dare move either.

Ruby lowered the gun. "Hey Jaune," she said, her voice quiet and apologetic. "Sorry about… this." She raised her gun, and then put it away. Without another word, she dropped back onto the bench.

Jaune lowered his arms, and stepped around the bench. He stuck his hands into his pockets and shrugged. "It's cool." He turned his head towards the sun. "That looks nice."

"It is," Ruby agreed, her gaze directed towards her feet. Jaune sighed, and sat down next to her. His hands threaded together, he stared at the sunset. Neither of them talked for a long time.

"I heard about Blake," he said, turning his head to face hers. "I'm… I'm sorry."

Ruby snorted. "Why are you sorry? You didn't do anything wrong…"

"I'm sorry to hear it happened," he explained. "I… I can't say I know how it feels, but I know it can't be good."

"That's one way of putting it," she said, her voice surprisingly bitter.

Jaune took in a breath, gathering confidence. "Do you… do you want to talk about it?" he asked, trying to keep his voice light.

Ruby gave a bitter laugh. "Not really."

Jaune smiled softly. "Yeah, yeah I get that." He looked down at his hands. "Do you mind if I talked?"

Ruby shook her head. Jaune closed his eyes and took in a breath _._ "Did I ever tell you about my family?" He winced, and slapped his forehead. "Of course you didn't, you've only known her for a week!" he mumbled, eliciting a small giggle from the red-clad huntress.

"Seven sisters, right?"

Jaune whipped his head around, fast enough to cause whiplash. His mouth hung open, and his eyes narrowed slightly. "Um, yeah. Yeah, seven sisters, Mom, Dad, and Granddad. How'd you know?"

Ruby paled, her eyes growing the size of small plates. If her grip on the bench was any tighter, she would likely snap the thing in half. Why did she say that? Stupid, stupid, stupid! She wanted to run away from Jaune and back up to her room, where she could hide, but his questioning face _demanded_ an explanation, and she wasn't sure how long it would take before he'd forget. If he ever did. "Um… I, uh…" she stuttered, staring down at the ground. Her heart battered against her rib cage, rattling so loudly that she was sure he could hear it. "I heard it, from someone. Yeah."

"Who could have…?" He sighed, and raised his hand to the back of his neck. "You know what? I don't care. It doesn't really matter anyways." He let out a shaky breath, and then pulled out his sword. "I take it you know where I got this from then?"

Ruby nodded.

"Well," he said, lifting up. Orange light gleamed off its surface, marred by dents and nicks from a lifetime of fighting. "My grandad, he… he was a war hero, back in the Great War. You know, chest full of metals, T.V. interviews, all of it. But…" His eyes grew cloudy, and he seemed to be talking to himself as much as her. "He never liked actually _talking_ about what he did. He'd… you know, tell us about his unit, where he fought, some of the stuff he saw, but… if you asked him about what he did? What happened to his buddies, to the places he went, he'd get really quiet." His head turned to her. "Kinda like you."

Ruby opened her mouth to respond, but he continued before she could, "My dad, he grew up on those stories. He always wanted to be a soldier, felt that it was his destiny. So he joined the army, just after he married my mom." Something dark came over his expression. "This was just before the faunus uprising."

Ruby's mouth dropped. Jaune took notice. "Yeah, I know. It's… not something he's proud of. I… I don't know what happened, exactly, during his service, but… when he got home he…" His eyes closed. "He drank, all the time. Strong stuff, the kind you don't get unless you want to forget. It took him _years_ to find another job, he refused to teach any of us how to fight, and…" His face bloomed red. "Well, he kept on having kids, so… you know."

Ruby did know, and snickered softly. The act relieved some of the weight resting on her chest. Not all, but enough to breath just a little easier. Jaune rolled his eyes.

"Look, I'm not… I'm trying to force you to do anything," he said, staring into her eyes. "But… if you need someone to talk to, then find me. Or Pyrrha, or Ren, or Nora, if you can hold her down long enough. Just…" He put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Don't try and do this alone. You've got friends."

Ruby grabbed his hand, and gave him a soft smile. "I know," she said. She didn't move, taking silent comfort in his presence, when her scroll dinged. Scowling, she pulled it out and nearly swore. "It's my dad, he's… he wants to talk with us."

Jaune nodded, and stood up. "Yeah, I better get going too. It's getting kinda late," he said, checking out a plastic watch on his right arm. With a wave, he started walking towards the dorm rooms. Ruby stayed behind, staring at the sun as it crawled beneath the horizon.

It really was quite the sight.

* * *

She opened the door to her dorm room slowly, taking care not to make it squeak. Her hoots were muddy, a rainstorm picking up as she walked back from the bench. Even now, large droplets splattered against the window, filling the room with plinking sounds. Weiss was sitting on her bed, scroll in hand, anxiously tapping against the screen. She shot her a hope-filled glance, before it shattered and turned to disappointment. Dad was pacing in the middle of the room, his hands stuck in his jacket, a worried frown set on his face. The moment he saw her, a small smile broke through.

"Ruby!" he said, stopping his movement. His eyes traveled past her ears and to the hallway behind her. "Is Yang with you?"

Ruby tilted her head. "Um, no? I thought she was in here."

Dad's smile vanished, and he slammed his fist into Blake's bed in frustration. It shifted, the books supporting the second bed nearly falling out. "Damn it, damn it damn it!" he swore, before turning to Ruby. "Do you know where she might have gone?"

"Uh, no? Dad, what's going on?" A far too familiar stone of dread dropped into her stomach. Was Yang hurt? Was Dad hurt?

Dad sighed, and sat down on Blake's bed. The frame creaked under his weight, and the mattress itself bowed where he sat. He brought his hand up to his forehead, and rested his head against it. "It's nothing, sweetheart, just had to talk to about…" He took in a deep breath. "About Blake, and what Ozpin said about her." His free hand curled into a fist as he finished his sentence. "But I haven't been able to find Yang anywhere, and I'm… I'm getting a little worried about her."

Ruby walked over to her father and sat down, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sure she's fine. Yang can take care of herself."

Something dark came over Dad's face, and he turned to stare out the window. Stars were beginning to peek through the fading sun. "I'm not so sure about that." He sighed, and turned back to Ruby. "Are you sure you don't know where she is?"

Ruby shook her head, but something came to her. A location that would undoubtedly be very important for her sister right now. "Actually, I... might know where she is."

Dad immediately brightened, and pulled out his scroll. "Great! Where? I'll get a Bullhead and—"

Ruby grabbed his arm, hard enough to shock him. Much softer, she said, "I don't think she wants company."

The same darkness from before returned. Dad's eyes met her own, pleading and vulnerable. "What she wants, and what she needs are not the same thing."

Ruby closed her eyes, and when she opened them, they were filled with determination. "I'll go. I'll bring her back, I…" She chocked on the final word. "I promise." Then, without another word, she ran off, her semblance kicking up a cloud of petals.

Dad sputtered and coughed. Reaching out an arm, he yelled, "Ruby!" But she was gone. He slammed an arm into the bed, a snarl on his face. "Damn it all." He lifted his head to look at Weiss. "At least I know you're not going anywhere."

Weiss gave him an awkward smile, and hastily pulled up her scroll.

* * *

The taxi driver almost refused to take her, requiring a substantial amount of money, and some haggling by her sweetheart to get him moving. The city was nearly dead, most of its citizens too scared to be caught outside their homes at night. It made for a quiet drive, and kept her from receiving too many odd stares. Stars glinted through the car's blurry windows, transforming the sky into a sea of white strings, all stabbing through her eyes. A wind howled through the streets, loud and cold. Even within the heated cab, Ruby still wrapped her cloak tightly around her.

Eventually, the car pulled up just before a stretch of police tape. Beyond it, Ruby could see several forensic trucks sitting on the grass, awaiting the techs in the morning. A few uniformed officers stood guard around the tape, with some in the scene itself, staring at something. Or someone. Big, black and yellow industrial lamps provided most of the light in the clearing. Ruby payed the taxi driver, wincing at how little money she had left to spend. He sped away without a word, leaving her to her fate. Whatever that may be.

The police officers stepped forward to stop her, but the moment they saw Crescent Rose strapped to her back, they let her go through. She felt a small amount of disappointment at their lax enforcement of the laws, but she was the one breaking them. It felt somewhat hypocritical to complain.

Walking past the first row of buildings, she found herself staring at the many craters and destroyed walls Yang and Blake had left behind. It was impressive. Yang and Blake were undoubtedly good fighters, but if she hadn't they were responsible for what she saw around her, she would have assumed it was caused by some large scale war, fought by armies.

It hadn't done Blake any good though.

She came up to easily the most heavily damaged building. Something tingled in the back of her mind, and an early memory of herself and Yang, going to a restaurant, surfaced in her mind. A gasp tumbled out of her lips. She knew this place, had been there when she was younger. Far younger. Shortly after Mom's death, she had decided, in her infinite six-year old wisdom, that Mom didn't die, and must be hiding somewhere. She figured that she would hide somewhere with roses.

Unsurprisingly, she never found anything.

Ruby stepped into the ruined husk of the building. Hastily erected scaffolding held up the roof in several places, to the point that it was likely the only thing keeping the building standing. Number cards sat everywhere, near a black scorch mark, a pile of rubble, what looked like a door. One such flare of yellow lacked the number, instead choosing a grey shirt, sweatpants, and messy hair.

Ruby put a foot forward, intending to greet her, but stepped on a piece of broken glass. Within a blink, Yang spun around, and pointed a deployed gauntlet straight at her face. She blinked, and then saw who it was.

"Ruby?" She brought her arm down. "I'm… I'm sorry, I didn't see you."

Ruby waved it off, a small smile coming to her lips. "We've all done it." It was meant to be a bit of a joke, something Yang could laugh at, and then they'd go back to Dad. Her sister didn't play along, instead turning her back on Ruby.

"This is where it happened," she said, her voice shaking. Ruby walked closer, resisting the urge to pull her sister into a hug. It wasn't easy. "Me and Blake were here, sitting down. Viola had just left, everything was cool, and then…" Her eyes closed, and Ruby caught brief glimmers of light as tears fell from her eyes. "Then she heard something, picked up a jacket Viola left, and said it was a bomb. She threw it, and… that's when everything went to hell."

Screw everything went tothe consequences. Ruby grabbed her sister and pulled her into a spine-snapping hug. Yang barely reacted. "I'm so, so sorry Yang."

She pushed her off. "Yeah, well, sorry doesn't bring her back," she said, stomping out of the building. Ruby followed her, nearly tripping over a pile of rubble. Yang stopped in the middle of the street. "Sorry doesn't make everything better!" Turning around, Ruby saw her eyes turn dark red, her hands clenched into tight fists at her side. "Why did you follow me? Huh?"

Ruby bit her lip and looked away, predicting her sister's reaction. "Dad wanted to talk to us about finding Blake and the plan."

"Why? So we can have another misadventure and solve jack-all?" Yang laughed harshly, the noise alien to Ruby. She shook her head. "Look around us!" She gestured towards the destruction around her. "Does it look like we're solving any problems?" She sighed and looked down. "What are we doing?"

Ruby stepped forward. "What do you mean? We're… we're stopping Cinder."

Yang let out a few harsh chuckles. "Look at how well _that's_ turned out. Blake's gone, Cardin's in the hospital, two people are dead, yeah, we're doing a great job." She closed her eyes, and walked off, into the field.

Ruby started to walk after her, but felt an increasing amount of dread. Was she right? Were they doing any good, at all? Ever since they came back, things did seem to be going poorer and poorer. Weiss nearly died, Blake nearly died, and now all of this… Maybe Yang had a point.

CRACK.

Ruby looked down at her foot. She had stepped on something, presumably glass. She bent down to pick it up, and make sure she hadn't ruined her boot. Instead of a small shard however, her fingers found a smooth, glass and metal device, with a spider web of cracks running through its surface. She picked it up, and the lightweight device turned on. Pushing a finger to its surface, it showed the main menu of a normal scroll. Ruby pressed a small picture of a camera, and was rewarded with a picture of Blake, lying on her bed at home, reading. A surge of energy ran through her.

"We can't give up," Ruby said, drawing Yang's attention. "We can't stop. Blake's still out there, Yang. Cinder's still out there. We can still fix this. We just need to keep trying."

Yang took a deep breath. "How, Rubes? What've we got left to try? There's no more leads, no more spurts of good luck. We have _nothing_ left to on."

Ruby clenched both her fists, her arms shaking. "I don't know," she admitted. "But we'll find something, we always do."

Yang smiled ruefully, and shook her head. It was a far cry from the angry tirade she was on before, so Ruby didn't comment. Suddenly, her eyes landed on the scroll. "What is that?"

Ruby held up the device. "I think it's Blake's scroll." She eyed Yang's hungry expression. "Do you want it?"

Yang nodded, and Ruby passed the device over. She stared at the same picture she was on, tears framing a small smile. "At least… at least we'll have pictures."

Ruby nodded.

Yang lifted the scroll, as if she was going to smash it into the ground. "I just wish I could call her or something! You know, go for an ice cream or do stupid stuff!" Her hand shook, and then she pushed the device against her chest, like one would hold a baby. "I…"

A thoughtful expression suddenly came on her face, and she lifted the scroll upwards. "Call…" She smiled, broad and gleeful. "I got it! Ruby, I got it!"

"Got what?" Ruby asked, confused, yet the good cheer of Yang proved as infectious as ever.

Yang started tapping away at the screen. "Blake called Viola just before she left. The numbers still on here. If I can get it, we can trace the phone— yes!" she shouted, raising a hand in the air. "Got it right here!"

Ruby's grin could've split the heavens. She rushed to her sister's side, tackling her in petal assisted hug. Yang threw her arms around the smaller girl.

Ruby pulled away. "Where do we need to go?"

"CCT," Yang said, pocketing Blake's scroll. "Call a cab."

Ruby nodded, and walked off, pulling out her scroll. Yang looked up into the night sky, grinning at the stars as the clouds moved off.

"Hold on just a little longer," she whispered. "We're on our way."


	22. Twilight

Taiyang didn't stick around very long after Ruby had left, deciding that he wasn't going to do any good by waiting around. He said he was going to look up information about the White Fang, try and figure out where they might be keeping Blake. Weiss recognised the attempt to keep busy; she felt it throughout most of the day. Still, it meant that she could have some alone time to sleep.

Or at least try to sleep. Her bed felt unbearably restrictive, and she couldn't keep herself still. Her blankets laid at her feet, long forgotten. A water bottle, stolen from the cafeteria in a delusional attempt to cure her insomnia, sat on the floor, empty and crushed. A textbook was spread out across her bed, having briefly captured her attention, before a picture of a black sword murdered any hope of relaxation. She was using her pillow as some kind of stress ball, nearly crushing it in her arms.

A groan fell from her lips, and she flipped herself onto her stomach. Cool air washed across her back, but it did nothing for the restlessness infusing her every cell. She let out a sigh, blowing strands of long white hair out of her eyes, and frowned. She needed a hair-cut, and soon. Her whole team did, really, especially Ruby. Yang probably _should_ have hers cut, but the odds of anyone convincing the blonde to cut off even part of her hair were so miniscule it wasn't even worth considering. Although Blake was becoming oddly close to her, perhaps she—

Weiss groaned, and pulled her pillow out from under her and over her head. Why could she not stop _thinking_ for five minutes? Long enough for her to get to sleep, at least. Being tired would not help her missing teammate, nor any of her team. Yet her body had not received that message, and was pushing her to get up, do something, _save her_.

That one, overriding though flew above all others. Blake, her teammate, her _friend,_ wasn't here, instead in the hands of some madman, and therefore, the world was not _right._ It was an odd feeling for the heiress, one she admitted was alien and completely unexpected, and growing worse every hour. It gripped her heart, pushed its beating up to levels that, in any other case, would earn her a worried check-in at the local hospital. And it _terrified her._

The pillow on top of her head grew surprisingly hot and...wet? Weiss raised the white rectangle, surprised to see two dark spots on its surface, roughly where her eyes were. She lowered a hand to her eye, and found her skin to be wet, tears rolling down her cheeks and neck. The pillow dropped to her chest, and she set her head down on the mattress.

These feelings went far, _far_ beyond any concern she had ever felt before, even during Ruby's run at Cinder. Her mind simply refused to be distracted, requiring something as engrossing as combat, or as dangerous as Dust manipulation to allow her even the smallest reprieve.

Some small, teasing part of her that sounded far too much like Ruby, wondered if she had a crush on the faunus. That thought was crushed just as quickly as it came. Even if that was the case, and that was a rather large "if", it still didn't explain the sheer… _intensity_ of her emotions. Crushes make you weak at the knees, and create a desire to know the other person. Not turn your stomach into a shredded mess, threatening to spill out everything within them at the slightest provocation, nor make her realise that the thought of her losing any of her team made her clutch her discarded pillow like it was the only thing holding her together.

Where did that come from? When had Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, "ice queen" according to so many, turn into a little girl, discovering that bad men wanted to hurt her Mommy and Daddy? Only somehow, it was worse. Perhaps that was simply because she knew what that hurt was now, or… perhaps it was the people involved. Three girls who, despite not having any obligations to do so, had become her friends.

Yang who, in spite of her fiery temper, was warm and nurturing, making her feel more at home than she ever had. Blake, the White Fang member turned trusted ally who showed her just how wrong she was. And Ruby… Ruby, the girl who became her friend, even though she acted like a jerk to her. Who showed her what _friendship_ actually meant. Half a year ago, Weiss wouldn't have spared a second for any of them, and now… now she couldn't imagine a world without them.

And that _terrified_ her.

The quiet creak of the door provided a welcome intrusion to her thoughts. Weiss's hands went for Myrtenaster, stored under her bed in a not unjustified bout of paranoia. The chamber spun, stopping with a click at ice. Powerful enough for her to fight, and hopefully contained enough to not blow anything up. Slowly the door swung open. Weiss's grip on her sword turned her knuckles white. Ssomeone's hair peeked through the door frame, dark, brownish-black.

A frown appeared on Weiss's lips. Who did she know that had that hair colour?

Her question was answered a moment later when two silver eyes peered over the wood. Weiss smiled, setting down her weapon on her bed. It was Ruby, no doubt about that, and her presence helped drive away the darkness clutching Weiss's heart. A brief pang of worry shot through her at how… _dependent_ this made her sound, but it was difficult to care.

Ruby, however, did not seem to see her in the darkness. "Weiss," she whispered. "Weiss, are you awake?"

Weiss nodded, before remembering that she couldn't see her. "Yes, Ruby, and no, you didn't wake me."

"Oh, that's good." Ruby's eyes darted to her, presumably following her voice. "Um, can I come in?"

Weiss cocked a brow. "It's your room too."

Ruby sighed. "I mean, are you, you know, dressed?"

Ah, that made more sense. Weiss glanced down at her nightgown. No, she wasn't _dressed_ , but this was Ruby, not her father. Nothing private was visible, and what could be seen certainly wasn't shameful. "I'm decent."

"Okay." Ruby entered, closing the door behind her. Her eyes took in Weiss's form, lingering on her eyes and hair. "Huh," she said, crossing the room and sitting down next to Weiss. "I forgot how nice you look with your hair down."

Weiss snorted, and twirled a lock of hair around her finger. "This doesn't look _nice;_ it looks like a rats nest."

Ruby shrugged. "I like it."

Weiss narrowed her eyes. Ruby was less than an inch away from the heiress, and the red-cloaked girl was acting as a furnace. "Is there a reason you're here, and Yang isn't?"

Her eyes brightened, and a smile formed on her face. "Oh, yeah!" she all but shouted, earning Weiss's hand over her mouth.

"Quiet!" Weiss hissed. "Before you wake up the entire building!"

"Mefe mof a ma fo finn mlake!" Ruby said, muffled by Weiss's hand. Glaring, she slowly lowered it, wiping away the small amount of spit on the bed. Ruby coughed, and tried again. "We've got a way to find Blake!"

The vice encircling Weiss eased off and she felt her lips curving into a real smile. Doubt, however, still snuck within the corners of her mind. "Are you sure?"

Ruby nodded. "Yep! We've got… um… what's her name…"

"Viola?"

"Right! Viola's scroll number! We're going to track it from the CCT!" she said, grinning like she just won the lottery.

Sadly, Weiss had to burst her bubble. "Ruby, do you know _how_ to track a scroll?"

The air pulled out of her sails, Ruby's shoulders slumped, her back liquefying. "No…"

Hand, meet forehead.

"Ruby, just… go, wait for me by the CCT," Weiss said, pushing herself off the bed. She walked over to the dresser and started pulling open drawers, sifting through the mountain of white for a clean combat skirt. Behind her, the bed creaked as Ruby jumped off. "We'll need to talk to, well, probably Ozpin, if we want to actually accomplish anything."

"Oh, okay… I'll go talk to Yang, then?"

"You do that."

Ruby coughed. "I'll… see you there?"

Thump. "Yes. Yes Ruby, that would be what I meant."

"Okay… um, bye!" With a torrent of rose petals, Ruby left. Weiss pulled out a clean skirt and quickly removed her gown. Her annoyance towards her partner replaced by sheer… relief, even as her stomach continued its aerobic routine. The corners of her lips were yanked up by the beating of her heart, and for once, she let it happen.

After all, soon they would find Blake, and everything would go back to normal.

Right?

* * *

"No."

"—and so we figured—wait, what?" Yang sputtered, her thoughts derailing off into a messy pile of shock and fear.

Ozpin blinked, and lifted his mug to his lips, the porcelain still garishly white. "Although I thank you for bringing this to my attention, there is already a plan in place to retrieve Miss Belladonna."

Yang suddenly empathized with a deer caught in the headlights, but that expression did not explain her emotional state. No, she was a deer caught in the scope of a railway gun, watching as the tank-sized bullet careened towards her. Weiss and Ruby acted as mirrors, their features twisted into the kind of outraged shock you normally see at horror movies.

Yang was the first to break the silence. "…You have to be kidding me."

Ruby soon followed her, as did Weiss.

"That's not—!"

"You cannot be _serious!"_

Ozpin lowered himself into his chair, the metal and fabric furniture groaning as he set his weight down. "I understand what this sounds like—"

"If you understood, you would be giving us a ship and some back-up!" Yang yelled, ramming her hands into Ozpin's desk. It shook under her attack, but did not crumple.

Neither did Ozpin's resolve. "This is a delicate situation, one that we must tackle with utmost caution."

"Bullshit."

"Watch your language, Miss—"

"Don't 'Miss,' me Ozpin!" Yang yelled, throwing her arms downward like a boxer removing blood. "Blake's out there, in danger, and you want me to sit here?"

Ruby grabbed her arm, but she might as well have tried to stop a bull with a feather. There was no brakes on Yang's anger now; her eyes matching the blood she wished dearly to spill.

Ozpin regarded her rage with a lightly amused expression, the corner of his lip lifting upwards. He forced it back down, and set down his cup. "I don't expect you to agree with my decision, only that you understand that I am doing what is needed."

Ruby started to tug on her arm again, far more aggressively than before. Yang tried to shake her off, but Ruby's vice-like grip prevented any attempt at dislodging her. Yang gave Ozpin one last glare, attempting to channel every ounce of anger, fear, and hatred burning in her veins through her eyes and towards him, burning him alive.

He sipped his coffee.

Yang let herself be dragged into the elevator by her younger sister, her glare remaining locked on Ozpin until the twin doors slide shut, shielding him from her fiery glare.

She slams her hand against the metal, shaking the entire contraption. "I can't—He just—Augh!" Her head rammed into the door, which bent under the force and nearly gave way. Heat poured from her skin, rushing out into every nook and cranny, turning the elevator into a toaster oven.

Ruby's the first to try and cool Yang down. "He must have a reason."

Yang snorted. "Yeah, sure. He's a tool, that's his reason."

Ruby swallowed, and turns to Weiss, eyes growing to planet size, desperately begging her partner for help. Weiss, however, copied Yang's glare, if not her passion in expressing it. "I must admit, I expected more from him."

Yang turned around, red dimmed by the cooling ice of curiosity. "Are you… _insulting_ a teacher?"

A snort, proud and arrogant, fell from Weiss's lips. "He hasn't earned any respect today, has he?"

"…No, no he hasn't," Yang said, chuckles that sounded disturbingly like police sirens following her words. She eased off the door, and flashed a grin at her two teammates, the kind that start wars and end lives.

"What do you think about breaking some rules?"

* * *

 **AN: To be honest, I'm not real happy with this chapter, for a whole bunch of reasons, but screw it. I've been sitting on this story for nearly two weeks; it's time for it to start moving again.**

 **Hopefully the next chapter is… better.**


	23. Assisted infiltration

Her legs scrapped against the floor, rough as sandpaper, yet strong as diamonds. Her two "escorts" kept their talons firmly implanted in her arm, and rarely gave each other a few quiet chirps of acknowledgement.

Blake imagined this must be hard for them. She is, after all, fairly heavy, and with her body wrapped up in Adam's silver serpent, she can't exactly walk. Or breathe. Or see, for that matter. Her eyes might as well be plucked out, torn from their sockets, crushed and eaten in a stew.

Around her, she could hear the gentle murmuring of the innocent's the White Fang came to "save". There was a few jeering taunts, a few whispered questions towards why a faunus is being held captive by their hero's. Blake wished she could tell them what their heroes were like. What kind of horrible tragedies they caused in their wake.

But she can't speak. Can't run. Can't do anything but let herself be dragged forward, like a kid who ran away from her parents.

Eventually the quiet murmurs of the crowd faded away to the angry roaring of a wounded bull. Adam was yelling at someone, his words full of rage, hate, and pride. "This is it! This is what we fight for! No more suffering! No more work! You are no longer _slaves_ of the Schnee Dust Company! You! Are! Free!"

A wave of sound, full of joy and gratitude washed over her. She could their feet hitting the ground, people clapping, hugging, actually happy with what changed.

"Unfortunately…" Adam begins, his words crashing into their joy and stamping it into the ground. "Many of us, many of our brothers and sisters will never see this day. They are gone, dead, or locked up in a human prison." He pauses, and although she can't see him, Blake can feel his anger, his hatred turn to her, crashing into her chest and ripping through her heart.

"And some, some of our _own,_ have betrayed us! Fought against us!" She's pushed forward, like garbage in a trash compactor, towards Adam. The crowd jeered at her, and she was sure that they would start throwing garbage if they could.

Something crashed into her head, snapping her neck to the left. Something wet and sticky flees her skull, dropping to the floor before it drips away.

A rock is a kind of garbage, especially in a mine.

"This is Blake Belladonna. Once, she was one of us, a girl with an incredible future." Of killing innocent people. "Now… now she is our enemy." The cloth covering her eyes was ripped off, light rushing in to reclaim its space. Her eyes fill with razor-sharp needles; first blinding white, then other colours slowly fade into view. Adam stood in front of her, his arms wide, bathing in the adoration.

"There will be no mercy!" He roared. "No regret! Today, she faces what she's done!" Turning on her, he ripped off the gag around her mouth, avoiding her skin like she would burn him. Her eyes darted up to his, locked within the gaze of a predator.

He crouched down, bringing his eyes down to look at her, in some parody of equality. "Of course," he whispered, a gentle breeze to the storm brewing behind him. "If you, perhaps, could offer some information… I'm not a stupid man, Blake."

It takes her a second to realise what he meant, but when she does, it strikes her with all the subtlety of a missile. Her mind flashed back to her words in the warehouse, tossed out without any care towards their impact. She supressed a shiver.

He gripped her chin, hard, like it would run away if it wasn't held down. "I'm giving you a chance here," he said. "A chance to stay breathing."

"I haven't done anything," Blake rasps, her throat dry from lack of water. Some small, most likely mad part of her mind wonders when she last drank. Two days ago? Three? Four? What does it matter?

"Haven't…?" Adam said, his face matching a four-year-old trying to understand algebra. "Haven't done anything?" Fast as Ruby, he hauls her to her feet, subjecting her to the full brunt of the crowd as they throw their invisible daggers at her. "She says she's done nothing wrong!" He shouted, eliciting a crowd-wide gasp. (When did he get so good at this?) "She says she is blameless! Perhaps she has forgotten what she has done!"

There's an undeniable Tenergy in the air now. Adam, somehow, has turned himself from a violent, unstable man into some kind of performer. The crowd followed his every word, lapping it up like they were dogs on a hot day. There still is a few dissenters, she noted, a few people, women mostly, all child-bearing age, hanging around the edges of the crowd. Several turn away, sickened by the spectacle, but unable to bring themselves to stop it.

"Blake Belladonna," he said, his voice crawling up her skin, tunneling through her ears. Every fibre in her body, every particle that made up her skin, was focused on him. The roaring sea of people around them quieted, the tide of emotions ceding to a gentle sprinkle over their skin.

He spoke, "You are guilty, of murdering two of our own. Two members of the White Fang, all those years ago, when you betrayed us for _her."_

It took her a minute to realise he was being literal. Once she did, the floor fell out from under her. Her stomach climbed up her throat, ripping through any muscle that dared get in its way, and forced up a weak croak. "…What?"

"You heard me," he spat, and suddenly her hair was screaming out in pain as he pulled on it, forcing her neck back like an anvil was tied to her head. He lowered his lips to her ear, close enough that his breath could invade her inner ear and make her skin crawl with maggots. "You _murdered_ two of our best men," he whispered. "Two of my _friends._ You. Will. Pay."

"What are you… what are you going to do to me?"

His lips curled upwards.

"Oh, we'll be putting you _exactly where you belong_."

* * *

Ozpin watched the elevator door swing shut, and let out a long, exhausted sigh. His stiff stance melted away, oozing into his chair. A hand came up to his forehead, trying to pull out the sudden pounding within it. Yang has quite the set of lungs on her.

He ground his teeth. His little showdown with team RWBY—or at least what was left of it—went about as well as he expected. Which is to say, poorly. Yang had, quite understandably, not taken his orders particularly kindly, and was undoubtedly wondering why he would act so slowly.

Indeed, he himself would be questioning his decision, were it not for the photos currently making rounds within the reporting community, showing faunus's being abused within what looked like a mine, and the sudden lack of communication from a mine just outside of Vale. There was no official statement yet, but the writing on the wall was clear.

The White Fang.

Ozpin wasn't sure what their game was, although the timing of all these events had Torchwick's fingerprints all over it. Under most circumstances, he'd simply send in Qrow, or one of the graduated teams in the vicinity. However, not only was Qrow missing, but judging from the rumbling he had heard from his sources within the government, any rescue attempt would be met with enough red tape to stop a rocket.

A thin, lithe smile grew on his face, reflecting off the surface of his coffee as he brought it upwards.

Of course, if a certain team were to go off on their own, explicitly against his instructions, well, there was little he could do. Oh yes, they'd have to be punished when they returned, but not with legal consequences. A simple, short stay in Glynda's classroom for a week should suffice.

Suffice indeed.

A few taps on the desk later, and Ozpin was in contact with Glynda, informing her that there had been a break-in at the tower, and if she wouldn't mind sending someone over to handle it.

Couldn't make it too easy on them.

* * *

The elevator continued on its slow descent, carrying the three trainee huntresses farther and farther within its depths. Ruby's heart was eager, it seemed, and was falling through her body and to the ground floor faster than a rocket. Her hands remained locked on Crescent Rose, and her eyes kept darting towards her two teammates. Yang, standing against the wall, hand holding herself up, eyes burning with the promise of _pain_ to whatever tried to stop her, and Weiss, eyes shut, hands wringing out every drop of colour from each other.

Shortly after Yang's proposition, she smashed her hand into the controls and set their destination to the public computers—the same floor Ruby had fought Cinder in all those months ago… or, the months in the future, or—whatever. Now they were almost there, and Ruby was… conflicted.

The desire to help Blake, to do everything she could to save her teammate, was roaring within her like a raging fire, but Ozpin… Ozpin said he had a plan, and he had a lot more experience than they did. At the same time, they had time traveled, knew more about Adam than he ever could. All she wanted was a clear answer, an obvious sign showing which path was correct, but there wasn't one.

"Ruby?" Weiss said, knocking her from her thoughts. "Are you ready?"

Her mind felt like it was stuck in molasses, but Ruby shook her head in the affirmative. "Yeah, yeah I'm good, just… thinking."

"About…?" Weiss jerked her head. "This?"

"Yeah, just… you know, wondering if this is right."

"Course it is," Yang said, pushing herself off the wall. "Blake's in danger, and Ozpin isn't doing a damn thing. We're all she's got."

"But what if he is?" Ruby argued. "What if there is a plan, and we're messing it up?"

"Surely he would have told us?" Weiss countered, her words smashing into her resolve and blowing apart the mortar holding it together. "He _must_ know that we would do this."

It was a fair point. Ozpin wasn't stupid, Ruby knew that much, and to think he wouldn't expect this was… insulting, to say the least. However, doubt remained firm, supporting her resolve with iron bars.

Yang provided the final blow. "Besides, he doesn't know Adam like we do. We've… we've seen the future, Rubes. We all know what he's capable of if he's not stopped." She finished with a long, hard look at her arm, tracing every hair on its surface.

"…Okay," Ruby breathed, pulling out her sweetheart and chambering a round. "What's the plan?" she asked, gesturing towards her sister. "It's kinda your show now."

"Right, right," Yang said, a few nervous chuckles falling from her lips. "Right, I—I guess it is now, isn't it?"

"You do have a plan, right?" Weiss asked, glancing over at the grey clad brawler like she had just admitted to drinking toilet water.

"Yeah, I… sort of."

A sigh broke free of Weiss's lips, tumbling around the metal interior of the elevator. "And this is why Ruby's the leader."

"Thanks Weiss!"

"Don't mention it. Please don't."

"Look, I _do_ have a plan," Yang said, holding up her hands to block any further conversation. "It's just… kinda based on a movie I saw when I was six. I mean, it was a documentary, so…"

"Oh fantastic," Weiss moaned. "What's next, we base a plan on a cartoon?"

" _Weiss,"_ Ruby warned, before turning to her sister. "What are we doing?"

"Well, uh, there's a program," Yang explained, scratching the back of her head. "I can put the numbers in, and then it'll track down Viola's scroll, and then…" A shadow fell across her face, draping Ruby in a waft of chilled air. "Then, we go after _her."_

Weiss let out a breath, and pulled Myrtenaster from its sheath.

"I suppose it's better than nothing," she said, and then the gentle ding of the elevator arriving rang through their ears.

* * *

Yang hurried to the nearest computer, the ten-digit number ringing in her head like a gum jangle. Every step she took shouted it out into her mind, drilling it straight through her spine and into her soul. A hundred years from now, she was sure she would still remember.

Behind her, Weiss and Ruby watched the sides, checking for any sign of an intrusion. Yang tried to do the same, but found the green ocean situated on the monitors a far more alluring sight, drawing her in like a moth to a flame.

"Give me a few minutes," she said, placing herself down on the ragged stools placed in front of each computer. "I'll need time to find this stupid thing…"

"Got it," Ruby said, walking over to the windows and peering out into the night. Stars winked back at her, communicating in a language no mortal had any hope of understanding.

Yang heard Weiss take up position beside her, but did not avert her gaze from the screen before her. Within seconds, she was in the main menu of the CCT operating system, scrolling through lists upon lists of different contacts and file sharing options. Some she recognised, used during the rare occasions Uncle Qrow had something to send them. Others less so, but none matched the program she needed.

A few scattered clicks, like shells raining down from a machine gun, broke her out of her thoughts and brought her eyes to Weiss's hand, hovering over the desk.

"I was working with our weapons earlier," she said, pulling away her hands and revealing a small pile of shells for Ember Celica, only they were glowing a soft, raspberry blue. "I thought these would be… useful."

"What are they?" Yang asked, even as she picked them up and started slotting them into her weapon.

"Ice, mostly. A little fire, to give them some kick," Weiss explained, rotating Myrtenaster cylinder as she spoke.

Yang blinked, and brought her hands back to the keyboard. "Thanks," she offered, before losing herself once again.

What felt like days but was surely minutes later, Yang's eyes fell upon the correct program, and she felt a wave of joy wash over her heart and send it into dance. Her lips tugged upwards, and before she knew it, the entry code for the scroll number was awaiting her input.

"Got you now, you little bitch," she whispered, typing in Viola's number with a force usually reserved for fighting.

"Got what?" Weiss asked, turning around with the grace of a figure skater. Ruby glided over as well, stopping just next to her shoulder.

"I got the program, and now all we have to do is…" Yang said, smashing the last number on the keyboard in front of her. "Got it! Come on, come on, find her…"

The three of them stared at the screen with bated breath, awaiting its judgement as a box in the center shouted, "Processing request." None of them dared move, and for the briefest of moments, the room was perfectly silent once again. No breath was taken. No heartbeat took place.

Finally, a small box rose above the original, blaring orange and red. The trio devoured its words, like it was the last scrap of food before a famine.

"Please input authorization code," Ruby read, each word placing a stone in the pit of Yang's stomach. "No no no no no…"

"This… this isn't the end," Yang said, bringing her hand to the lettered surface once more. "We've still got that code, right? From before?"

"Well, yes," Weiss said, her eyes narrowing. "But is that—"

"Access denied," the computer silently said, earning a spider web of cracks after Yang smashed her hand into it.

"You have got to be _fucking_ kidding me!" she yelled, continuing her beat down like it would somehow assist them. "Needs a code? Of course it needs a code!"

Yang's assault never ended, turning the computer into a modern art exhibit, but it continued to display that same, mocking message, burrowing into their skulls.

Suddenly, a voice rang out from the elevator, Yang's anger crashing into it with the force of a semi-truck. "I don't know if you've realised, but that's government crap you're breaking."

Team RWY sprung to action, Weiss flying to Ruby's side, Yang throwing herself over the computer monitor, weapons burning hot. Her eyes glanced over the quartet, catching sight of some kind of weird beanie, an ammo belt…

Her heart rapidly reaching superhuman speed, she turned her gaze to the other intruders. Giant man with green armor and a huge sword, shorter guy with red hair and a red vest, and a bunny girl with brown and yellow armor and fearful eyes.

Yang felt her mouth drop open, and her arms dangled at her sides, sensing the danger their human was now in. Her legs turned to quivering jelly, refusing to cooperate.

Team CFVY, standing right in front of them, all pulling out weapons. (Except Velvet, because she can kick like a freaking ninja)

Yang brought her arms upwards, but cast a glance towards her sister, staring at the team with the same mix of awe and fear she was.

 _Please, please tell me you have a plan, little sis…_

' _Cause I sure as hell don't._

* * *

 **AN: Hope this wasn't too short. My other story has spoiled me...**


	24. Dawn-Part 1

**Because I need to sleep, but I also want to update, part one today, part two tomorrow.**

* * *

No one moved as the two teams stared each other down, the air crackling under the strain. Ruby felt Crescent Rose slide into her hands, but was not aware of it, her eyes still locked on Coco's shimmering pools of darkness. Sounds of her teammates readying their weapons reached her ears, battling with the thundering of her heart as it thrashed against her chest.

"I don't think we've met," Coco said, stepping forward and casually sliding her handbag to her hand, like it wasn't a minigun capable of cutting a Nevermore in half. "I'm—"

"Coco Adel," Yang finished, leaving Coco to stare at her with the expression of a dead fish. "Fox Allistair, Yatsuhashi Daichi, and Velvet Scarlatina." With each word, she cast a glance to the huntress or huntsman that bore it.

Coco took a step back, the rest of her team shifting their gaze from "curious" to "threat". "Alright, I take it you've heard of us."

"You could say that," Yang growled, shards of light glinting off her gauntlets. Her hands clenched, her nails trying to dig their way through her skin.

Ruby took a step forward and parted her lips, the inside of her mouth dry as the desert sand. "What are you doing here?"

A laugh bubbled from Coco's chest, spilling out from her lips. "Really?" she said, letting her bag slip down, with only a few fingers keeping it out of reach of the floor. "You need to ask?"

A snarl ripped itself from Yang's lips, but before she could do something her teammates would regret, Ruby took a step forward and blocked her advance with her free hand.

"You're going to try and stop us, aren't you?" she whispered, her voice barely rising above the gentle puffs of her breath.

A sigh fell from Coco's lips, and she lowered her head. "Yeah," she admitted. "If we have too. Kinda hoping you'll be willing to talk."

"Why?" Ruby asked, her hand drifting towards her gun. "You _have_ to know what we're here for."

Coco remained impassive, but her teammates were beginning to fidget. Velvet's eyes slipped to the floor.

"I know," Coco said, a sigh following her words. "I saw the news. I'm sorry about your teammate, but this isn't going to help her."

"And doing nothing will?" Yang took a step forward, but it was a gentle step, like the floor was made of marshmallows. "This is the only chance we have left." Her hands clenched, and Ruby heard a faint edge of desperation creep into her voice, riding along on every word she spoke. "What if it was Velvet, Coco? What if she was in danger? You really going to tell me that you'd just… wait?"

Coco didn't answer.

Velvet broke the silence, speaking with the force of a silenced gunshot. "It doesn't matter. You don't understand what you're doing, how the White Fang will react. This…" She gestured towards the broken computer monitor, and to the city below, still buzzing with police cars and firefighters. "This scares them. And if they get scared…"

"Your teammate dies," Yatsu finished, his voice booming through the room.

"They cover this stuff in the later grades," Coco explained. "Hostage situations, negotiations, all of it. Believe me; pushing forward won't end well for _anyone."_

"What if they kill her anyways?" Weiss countered, bringing her sword up to bear. "I know what you mean, but she _isn't_ a hostage. Where's the ransom? Demands? Any reason as to why they would capture her beyond killing her?"

"If they wanted her dead, why not just shoot her?" Coco said. "Why capture her?"

"Because Adam's a psychopath who enjoys pain," Yang growled. "And he's got… history, with Blake. He wants to make her _suffer."_

Coco let out a breath. "As much as that sucks, it's probably the only reason she's still alive." Her head jerked up, glasses sliding down the bridge of her nose. "Are you really going to tell me he _won't_ kill her if you show up?"

"We can't predict _anything_ he'll do," Weiss argued. "He's not motivated by any sane reason; he's doing this out of hate."

"We have to move while she's still alive," Yang said, red peeking through lilac. "There's too much risk in leaving her there."

A sigh fell from Coco's lips, and her gaze shifted from Yang's glowering form to Ruby's shrunken silhouette. "What do you think? Red? Rouge? Whatever your name is?"

"Ruby," offered Velvet, her voice barely above a whisper.

Coco gave her a small nod, and continued, "You're the leader, aren't you? Is this what _you_ think is right?"

"I…" Ruby said, her voice fading off into the night air. She took a deep breath in to replace it, and felt the cold settle in her limbs. "It doesn't matter. We can't get track down her scroll."

"You're tracking a scroll?" Coco blinked, bewilderment taking residence behind those black shades. "Ooookay then, could have stayed home. First years don't have access to those files."

"But you do, don't you?" Weiss's words slammed into Coco, punching through her front of unflappability, catching on the flesh with barbed hooks. "You're almost completely independent by this point, so they'd need to give you your own code."

CFVY's reaction was immediate. Yatsu pulled out his sword, letting it hang from his hand by his side. Fox's arms dropped, hands curled, and Velvet grabbed her box thingy, stopped only by Coco's hand.

"I don't know if you remember, but we're here to stop you," Coco said, swapping her bag to her right hand.

"…That's not a denial," Weiss noted.

Ruby took a step forward. "Please, you have to help us. This is our only chance to save her."

Velvet looked away, teeth digging into her lips, like it was the only thing keeping her from talking.

"I…" Coco shook her head. "It isn't my call. Ozpin said—"

"Ozpin's said a lot of things," Yang snarled, stomping up to Coco, close enough that the minigun wielder had to take a step back. "What's the matter? Can't make a decision by yourself?"

Coco pushed the brawler away, teeth bared. "Look, like it or not, he's the boss. Believe me, I get where you're coming from. Really, I do. But _it isn't my decision!_ It isn't yours; it's Ozpin's. And I really do not want to piss that guy off, alright?"

"So you're scared?" Yang jeered. "Scared of a man probably five times your age?"

"Yang, stop this!" Weiss hissed, but the blonde was undeterred.

"You know what?" Yang snarled, advancing towards Coco with the same gait of a serial killer stalking its prey. "You're just another idiot who has no clue what the _hell_ is at stake. You have no idea what that man did, does, will do, whatever!" Red surged through her eyes, and the room turned from the inside of a freezer into an oven.

Coco's eyes grew beyond the frames of her glasses, slivers of white peeking out like stars on a cloudy night. "Holy shit," she breathed. "You're not—you need help. _Professional_ help.

"Yeah, I know," Yang growled.

Coco let out a sigh, and brought her eyes to Yang's, staring straight into the red circles. "You aren't to give up on this?" She leaned to the right, regarding Ruby and Weiss with a cool stare. "None of you are?"

"She's our teammate," Weiss affirmed. "Our—our friend."

"I don't like this," Ruby admitted, but she pulled out Crescent Rose and held it at her side. "But we don't have any other choice."

Coco let out a sigh, the crack between her skin and her glasses showing her eyes sliding shut. "Alright then," she said, eyes reopening with a fire burning within their depths. "Yatsu, start us off."

There was barely enough time for Yang to get her hands up before a giant bronze sword crashed into them, sending her flying.

Weiss cast a glyph just before she crashed into a computer to cushion the blow, but was unable to do anymore before two red claws tried to take her head off. She ducked under Fox's arms and swept her sword towards his feet, but he jumped over her and raked his hands down her back.

Ruby brought her scythe up and aimed it him, pulling the trigger as fast as she possibly could. Just as the Dust ignited and the metal slug began to accelerate down the barrel, her gun was suddenly forced downward, launching the bullet harmlessly into the floor. All she could see was two brown eyes, staring at her like she was a puppy about to be put down.

"I—I'm sorry," Velvet said, stepping off Crescent Rose. "I really don't want to do this." Her leg came crashing down, Velvet somehow managing to get above her. It was almost a complete blur to Ruby, fast enough that her eyes struggled to follow the rabbit faunus's movements.

Almost.

Her scythe rose to meet her foot, the metal of her armor crashing into the red and grey. A horrible screeching sound, like two tuning forks smashing into each other, filled the room.

"So am I," Ruby growled, before bringing her scythe down on Velvet's head.

* * *

Weiss's glyph kept Yang from breaking her back, but it still took a minute for her to regain her bearings once she hit the floor. She could hear metal grinding against metal, feet smashing into the floor, Dust firing, and, most critically, a minigun powering up close by.

Very, _very_ close.

Yang rolled to her right milliseconds before an avalanche of bullets smashed into the metal behind her. She rose to her knees, firing a volley of shots towards Coco, but each were blocked by a bronze sword, which came flying towards her. She fired two shots into the ground, launching herself over the sword-wielder's attack, and landed at his back.

Yatsu turned, faster than a spinning top, and swept his sword across her chest. She jumped back, but the edge caught her shirt, cutting through the admittedly thin fabric like it was wet tissue paper. She retaliated with several jabs to his chest, but each were stopped by that sword, although it was starting to resemble a bronze river flowing across his chest.

She took a step back, gauntlets still hot from the shells she had fired, with the weight of realisation settling in. Yatsu was strong, at least as strong as she was, probably more. (Not accounting for semblances) But the problem was that he was much, _much_ faster than she was, and considerably more skilled.

Of course, because misery loves company, her thoughts were interrupted with the peppering of bullets ramming into her back, pushing out every whisper of breath left in her. Even through aura, Yang could feel her ribs crackle, bruises spreading across her skin.

She tried to jump to the right, but caught a blade to the stomach and was lifted clear off the floor, ramming into the ceiling and leaving a small crater. It took a few seconds for gravity to realise she was there, slowly peeling her off like it was still deciding if it actually wanted to.

She landed on the floor with a clang, shooting cold air against her skin. Her clothes, not really designed for combat, were shredded, exposing a great expanse of her back, and the purple bruise spreading across its surface. Yang took in a breath, her hand shooting to her chest as a spike of fire ran through her lungs.

Time for a new plan.

Yang threw her arms out, slinging the shells within her gauntlets to the floor, and pulled out a handful of the light blue versions Weiss gave her, slotting them into place with practised ease. They didn't have the belt of her normal rounds, so each one had to be placed manually.

Yatsu wasn't interested in waiting for her to reload, rushing at her with his sword low, the metal flowing towards her feet in a river of sharpened bronze. Thanks to the seconds it took him to reach her, Yang managed to jump over the sword, and smash a heel into its surface, ramming the blade into the floor below, creating a web of cracks radiating from its entry point.

She saw the muscle's in Yatsu's arm tighten as he tried to pull it out, but before he could make any progress, she fired a shot.

Ice spread out from the tip of the sword, racing up its side and spreading across the floor, sinking deep within the weakened surface. Ice flowed up his arm, rooting the swordsman to the floor, and becoming nothing more than a punching bag to the brawler.

Yang, however, knew exactly how long it would take to break free of that little ice. So she kept Weiss's rounds loaded, and turned herself into a frozen geyser, launching Yatsu upwards with a frozen uppercut, each metre of height followed by foot-thick ice.

Before long, the sword wielder was stuck, suspended several metres above the floor and encased in a freezing cocoon. His muscles strained, desperately trying to escape, but he might as well have been trying to break through steel with his pinkie.

Yang emptied her gauntlets, the spent shells clattering to the floor. Fresh stripes were thrown in, and she fired herself across the room, towards a certain minigun and its wielder.

Coco switched her gun back to its handbag form and took a swing at her head. Compared to Yatsu's attack, it was almost trivially easy to go under it, and throw a fist into her stomach.

When her head came down, still reeling from the attack, Yang slammed her fist into her chin, firing a shot as it connected. Coco went flying upwards, her chest right at eye level, and Yang threw another punch at her.

Coco smashed into one of the windows, cracks radiating out from her position, like ripples in a pond. Her bag clattered to the ground, followed shortly by the girl herself. She peeled herself off the floor, sunglasses falling off in a tangle, broken mess, exposing two burning eyes.

Yang threw back her arm for another shot, but before she got the chance, the minigun roared to life, bullets sparking off the ground in front of her. She threw herself to the side, behind a bank of computers, covering her head as bullets whizzed by. Her arms leaned out; firing a few shots towards the gunner, but nothing stopped the hailstorm of bullets.

Until they did.

Yang peeked her head out of cover, but was unable to see anything before a giant grabbed her hair and _pulled,_ ripping her from cover and suspending her in the air. She caught sight of Coco, leveling a smug smirk at her predicament, before the giant pulled down, smashing her face into the floor with the force of a train crashing into a brick wall.

Metal met her teeth, her smile saved only by her aura. Fluid, hot, sticky, and coppery pooled under her lip, spilling out in big, fat drops on the dark floor. Stars danced in her eyes, their feet pounding her skull with deep booms. Each heartbeat crashed into her head, tunneling into her brain and tearing it apart as they went.

Then she was rising again, and saw the leering face of Yatsu, shards of ice still dotting his clothes. He gave her one last look of anger, (and perhaps pity) and then threw her upwards, bringing his sword to her chest.

Fast.

* * *

Ruby dropped to the floor, spinning her scythe around her. Petals gushed off her body, her semblance pushed to the absolute limit. Crescent Rose and her body were fused as one, each movement of the weapon as instinctive as breathing.

Velvet leapt over her attack, shooting her leg forward to jab at her chin. Her neck tugged her head out of the way, but it didn't stop the foot from hitting her shoulder, and sending her spinning into a computer.

Her scythe rammed into the floor, adding a flurry of sparks to the rainstorm of petals. Ruby's head rose, eyes alight with the power of a storm. She ripped her scythe from its metal cradle and spun it behind her, firing herself forward like lightening.

Velvet's eyes grew wide, and she raised her arms just in time to stop Ruby's curved blade. She was pushed backwards, feet grinding against the floor.

Ruby swept her rifle downwards, planting its tip into the ground, and pulled the bolt back. Her finger brushed against the trigger, and the gun let out a mighty roar, spewing bullets towards her opponent.

The first shot was dodged, the second and third slamming into Velvet's arms and legs.

Ruby ripped her scythe free and threw herself forward, spinning her scythe behind and over her. Velvet lowered her arms, let out a fearful gasp, and dodged to the right, just barely avoiding being skewered.

Ruby tried to lift her scythe out, but got nowhere before she felt her chest pushed in on itself. Her eyes glanced down, and saw both of Velvet's feet, connected to the almost prone huntress with two very strong legs.

Her scythe tore itself free of the floor as she herself was rocketed upwards, bouncing off the roof and to the ground below. Her head sang sharp songs, the footsteps and gunfire surrounding her a burning choir to the orchestra within. Ruby's fingers fumbled for her scythe, and she slowly pushed herself to her feet, ignoring the way the ground slipped out from under her.

Next to her, Weiss threw up a shield against Fox's claws, the two red pieces of metal bouncing harmlessly off the glow. Her sword gleamed with blue ice, and the ground erupted in white shards, surrounding the huntsman's feet and rooting him to the floor.

Weiss drew her blade back, bringing her free arm to the cylinder and spinning it, until the blade shined with pure white, glinting off her scowl and bending through the frozen crystals. It thrusted forward, ringing out a trill as it cut through the air, only to give a sharp note of pain when it was wrenched to the ground by a brown leg. Weiss barely had time to see her new attacker before a foot connected with her temple, sending her into the ground.

Velvet rushed after Weiss, allowing Fox to carve his feet free of the ice. The same motion cleared Ruby's head of its fog, allowing her to swing the scythe towards his head. His head dropped, only a few wisps of hair showing just how close she got, and then she felt his weapons dig into her stomach.

Her gun's barrel planted itself in the floor, and she pulled the trigger, firing a bullet downwards and herself upwards. Both her feet smashed into Fox's jaw, and when she reached the apex of her swing, she flipped herself around and stomped down on his head.

She felt the impact ring through his bones, each singing their own song of pain. Twisting around, she hooked her scythe under his arms, lifting the boy up to her, and spun the red death dealer around, aimed straight for his stomach. Her eyes darted towards the nearest window, a white spider web growing out from the center. At this range, she could easily bash him out of it.

Her blade was inches from his skin when it was stopped by red steel. Ruby's eyes grew wide, and then she felt her sweetheart ripped from her hands, clattering to the floor in a mournful symphony.

Soft taps sounded out from the floor below as Fox found his footing, her own body still suspended in the air. Her wrists twisted, moaning in agony as she was thrown to the ground, the floor meeting her head with a hard slap. Stars danced in her eyes, prancing to the aching beat within her skull.

Two blurry blobs of red shrieked towards her. Ruby threw her semblance into nitro, rolling to the left fast enough to leave a vacuum.

Her hands groped for her weapon, moving fast enough that an observer would think she found it on her first try. She tried to bring it to bear, but could barely use it to steady herself as the drums within her head refused to quiet.

Some small part of her mind wondered if she had a normal, non-injury induced headache. She chuckled at the thought. Surely, the universe didn't hate her that much, right?

She found herself questioning this when Fox slammed back into her few, jabbing at her with the speed of a machine gun. Each time she saw the blow coming, she tried to bring Crescent Rose to block, counter-attack, anything. Each time, Fox was already done, or even worse, simply batted the stick—for at this range, that was all it was— like she was a little girl.

Her heart burning with frustration, she shifted the scythe into its gun form, and tried to shoot Fox.

In hindsight, removing the one thing keeping him from grabbing her right arm and _twisting_ was a really, really bad idea.

Every muscle in her arm shrieked with pain, fire, and pain, each shrill sound tunneling through her flesh and flying out her open mouth. Something _popped,_ and suddenly the arm would no longer turn, or do any more that twitch at her commands.

For the second time that night, Crescent Rose fell to the ground, throwing up shavings that she desperately hoped were the floors.

Fox's continued assault turned her around, and allowed her to pick up her scythe with her still functioning arm. Scythe in hand, she tried to think of some plan, a way out of his grip.

She knew three things: A. She needed help before she could fight. B. Fox wanted to stop her, not permanently injure, and C. If he had to choose between letting go, and holding on to her arm and nothing else, he would choose letting go.

She hoped.

Petals flew out in a gust of wind, Ruby's feet grinding into the floor like a cheese shredder rocket. The grip on her arm intensified, before Fox realised what she was doing and let go, unwilling to risk maiming her. Her lips shot upwards, joy bubbling within her chest like chocolate fondue, only to be extinguished by the _very close holy crap_ wall in front of her.

Moving her head in a way that would break if it if she was anyone else, her eyes met her misshapen shoulder.

 _When life gives you lemons…_

Her body twisted in the wind, her semblance providing the necessary force to get her moving. Teeth grinded together in her mouth, every part of her body, aside from the shoulder, tensing in preparation for the blow.

Which was a good thing, because _ow. Ow, ow ow ow ow. Holy crap, that hurts!_

She might as well have fallen off building, landed in a pit of spikes, and then got gored alive by a Beowolf, because there was little else in her mind aside from _pain._ Sheer, unstoppable, blinding _pain._ How did Dad do this once, let alone the dozens of times she saw him pop bones back into place.

It was a small mercy that she could move her arm again, and the pain soon faded to a simple tiredness. Her whole body felt drained, like each hit she took spilled more and more fuel on the ground, and now she was running on little more than fumes.

Of course, because the universe wasn't done using her as a punching bag, the first thing she saw when she looked up was red claws leering at her, and growing ever bigger.

Yippee.


	25. Dawn-Part 2

Myrtenaster crashed into yellow metal, sparks mixed with lingering Dust. Weiss could feel the heat wafting off their battle, could see the resolve mixing with sadness in the faunus's eyes and wondered, not for the first time, why Velvet had ever left Cardin bully her.

Considering how she was doing now, it should have been the other way around.

Weiss flicked the chamber and thrust her weapon down, fire bursting from the blade and surrounding them in light. Nervous eyes flickered to the side, before Velvet leapt forward, dropping down and smashing both feet into her legs, briefly shifting gravity to the side.

Before her head could greet the floor, two feet smashed into her stomach, batting the heiress into the ceiling with all the grace of a drunkard. Her vision clouded, reducing Velvet to little more than a brown blur before she was ripped from the roof. (Belatedly realising that she was _in_ the roof)

This was why she didn't normally fight CQC experts. They were usually far more agile than she was, and it was difficult to block an attack when there was another from the other limbs.

Velvet's next attack ripped her from her thoughts, and she realised that she had somehow stood up, and was hoisting her sword up to deflect two legs coming down at her. (Was this girl a huntress or a pinball?) Metal greaves grinded against her weapon, sparks flying around her like a volcanic storm. Her arms shook under the exertion, and it wasn't long before her knees hit the ground, air rushing upwards.

Velvet landed next to her, her legs already rocketing towards Weiss's head. The heiress rolled to her right, casting a glyph to push herself farther away. She used the same momentum to get her feet under her and lift herself up, just in time to block Velvet's outstretched legs before they smashed into her head.

The bunny gained an uncharacteristic frown, and backed away from the heiress. Weiss felt her lips rise, and drew back her sword, the blade glowing an eerie crimson. A glyph rose to life beneath her feet, pushing her and her blade forward, screaming towards her opponent like a wraith rising from the grave.

Her blade connected with something, but it was not flesh and bone. Rather, it was a glowing blue sword—more accurately, the outline of a sword, held by a shaking, but determined faunus. Weiss's eyes traced the lines, following them until she saw a large, flat hook at the tip of the blade.

This was going to hurt, wasn't it?

Myrtenaster's handle slipped downwards as the pressure on it grew. Weiss drew the sword away, and ducked under the sudden blue blur above her head, watching as a few stray strings of hair were sliced off.

A similar blur appeared above her head, and she pushed against the ground to roll herself out of its path. The ground shook at its impact, plucking a discordant note from her shaking bones.

Her feet met the ground uncertainly, as if the ground would reject them and allow gravity to pull her through. Weiss's teeth met, both sets warring against each other, and she threw up an array of glyphs at her front, all angled towards the faunus in front of her. Myrtenaster's chamber spun towards light blue, and she pushed the energy through her body and out the snowflakes around her.

Shards of ice, large and sharp, flew from the white glow, screaming towards Velvet with the fury of a blizzard. Weiss saw her eyes widen, and her hands fly to her weapon, blue dots surrounding her hand. The shards grew too close, and Weiss couldn't see anything.

Until orange flames erupted from the young girl, burning away the ice like a volcano in the artic. Weiss's jaw dropped, wrenched back into place by a gout of flame aimed straight towards her.

Her weapon came up on instinct, more ice to counter the flames, the two old enemies eager to renew their ancient battle. Velvet's weapon—a copy of Oobleck's odd thermos—spewed flames like a chainsaw spewed sawdust. Her own weapon, already drained by the battle, strained under the pressure, the blue glow growing dangerously dark.

Eventually, the flames stopped, but there was no time for rejoicing. Weiss felt, rather than saw, the first bullets hit her legs, raking upwards towards her neck. She threw up a shield, but already she could feel the bruises grow across her skin, claiming each inch as its own territory. Velvet's weapon—Coco's minigun, rendered in a blue lines—barely even paused as it continued to fire, aiming on destroying her shield through sheer volume of fire.

Weiss rammed her weapon into the ground, countering Velvet's attack with a blast of wind that traveled through the floor and erupted under her feet. The faunus went flying up to the roof, gun scattering off into tiny blue stars. A similar blue surrounded her hands, and sharp, leering claws dug into the roof, allowing Velvet to crawl along its surface and towards the heiress, staring at her as dumbfounded as could be.

…Could she go back to fighting pigs now? Please?

Velvet dropped down from the ceiling, slashing her arms across Weiss's chest. A shield rose up to stop her, but with added power of the fall, her weapons tore straight through it and sent the heiress flying across the room, slamming into the wall with all the grace of a bowling ball.

Her whole body ached, every muscle, bone, and tendon stretched past its breaking point. Arms and legs were little more than gelatinous masses at this point, barely able to stand up to air pressure, let alone gravity.

Within seconds, her suffering was interrupted by the red and black form of Ruby, sliding into a similar position next to her, gouges running down her sides. (Thankfully, the red was from her outfit alone) Silver eyes flickered to Weiss's chest, watching as her lungs struggled to pull in air.

"This isn't working," Weiss wheezed, turning her own eyes to meet her leader's.

"No kidding," Ruby said, before pushing herself to her feet. "Have any—ow—ideas?"

Weiss shook her head, but just then, she caught sight of Yang, smashing into the wall across the room. Yatsu and Coco both stood nearby, their eyes searching for teammates, believing Yang to be finished.

Neither of them noticed the brawler as she rose, golden light spilling down her hair and onto her gray clothes, transforming them into a fiery symbol of any who dared oppose her.

Still, both girls knew it wouldn't be enough, not as outnumbered and, admittedly, out-classed as they were.

"Weiss," Ruby said, grabbing her partners hand and hauling her to her feet. (And holding that grip, for a reason that escaped Weiss until she felt energy course through her limp limbs) "Ice dragon."

"What?"

"Ice dragon!" Ruby said again, pointing towards her sister.

"Um…" Weiss cast her mind back, trying to remember where she had heard that term before. "I can't remember that one…"

Ruby's hand met her forehead, with Weiss realising what it was like to be on the other side of exasperation for once. "The glyph thing? You know, with the clock?"

"Oh! Right! I… I knew that." Ignoring her partner's snickers, Weiss turned towards their other teammate, and fired a yellow glyph under her feet.

Time to even the odds.

* * *

Coco and Yatsuhashi's gaze wasn't on Yang as she stomped towards them, eyes burning like midnight stars, hands tighter than a miser's purse. They didn't notice Weiss's glyph forming under her feet, shooting energy into her shoes and up her skin, settling within each of her cells.

They didn't notice as she started running, crossing the room almost as fast as Ruby could.

They did notice when her fist smashed into Yatsu's head, slamming him into the ground.

 _How's it feel now?_

"You're a determined son of a bitch, I'll give you that," Coco muttered, before bringing her gun to bear. Red hot lead spewed out of each barrel, screaming past Yang's ears as she dropped and rolled past.

Coco's eyes grew, as if that would turn what she saw into something else. "How did you…?"

That was all she time for before Yang fired herself to her, slamming her elbow into her chin. Skin warped around the joint, before her opponent was sent flying across the room, straight into a computer, trapping her in its embrace.

Tips of lips curled upwards, as Yang revealed in the song of speed dancing within her heart. This was… this was amazing. Incredible, fantastic, flawless, beautiful. How did she live without this?

Thumps sounded out behind her as the jolly green giant rose to his feet. Yang never twitched as he grew closer, until he swung his sword towards her neck. Then she _moved,_ arms curling in front of her, feet twisting her body, just in time for the blade to crash into her gauntlets.

Yatsu's face twisted with confusion, his eyes still trailing from her neck to her eyes as Yang twisted her arms, leveling both her fists and the flat of the sword. She tensed her hands, letting the trigger mechanism do its job, and fired two shots at the metal weapon.

Yatsu's grip was firm, honed by many years of battling stubborn Grimm, often knee deep in bodies.

However, there was few things on the _planet_ stronger than Yang when her semblance was a full bore, and he wasn't one of them.

His sword went flying, cutting into the roof like a lawnmower on weeds. A hand immediately came rocketing towards her, but a simple curl of the neck was all it took for it to miss. Yang hands immediately went up, the left grabbing his forearm, the other rocketing towards his stomach, slamming into it with the force of a burning train.

As he bent down from the blow, Yang twisted herself around until she had her back to the warrior, and flipped him over her shoulder. His head came crashing down into the floor below, driven deeper by a two jab combo delivered to his…

Well, it hurt.

Bullets drilled into her torso, fired by a decidedly worried looking Coco, a thin trail of blood running down her left eye, casting furtive and pleading glances towards her teammates.

Yang threw her right arm back, pushing a shot out the barrel and towards her opponent. As she did that, something sharp crashed into her side, digging between her ribs. A snarl ripped itself from her lips, and she turned, grabbing her attacker's arm hard enough to break bones, if he didn't have his aura.

Fox looked up at her, shock draining away the colour in his skin. Despite her aching chest, Yang couldn't help but smile.

 _Weren't expecting this, were you?_

Fox rammed his free arm towards her middle, but she twisted behind him, his arm bending in a way that _looked_ painful. She could only imagine how it felt.

A fist connected with the back of his head, red fire jutting out from each side. Fox's face slammed into the ground, the metal crumpling under the force.

More bullets scattered to the ground in front of her, falling from Coco's minigun like hail from a cloud. Yang smirked, and ran towards the gunner, much to her clear surprise. The multi-barreled death dealer was aimed squarely at her head, but by the time the trigger was pulled, she was already gone.

 _Note to self: thank Weiss._

Coco's gun crumpled down into a bag, but the fight was already over. Yang ducked under her swing, kicking out her leg and slamming both fists into her chin. She could hear the _crack_ as teeth smashed into teeth, and the jaw bounced it its casing.

The girl stared at her, dazed, before she fell to the floor in a heap of torn clothing and shredded clothes. Small drops of blood dripped to the floor, but it was nothing like the gyser that gushed from Cardin's skull all those… two or three days ago.

(How the _hell_ did she forget that?)

Coco was out, but there was little time to celebrate before another weight pressed itself against Yang's neck. Curses flew threw her mind, all directed at herself, as she was lifted from the ground to meet Yatsu, looking decidedly worse for wear, but standing, breathing, fighting.

He began to lower his arms, assisting her in giving the floor a good night kiss, but before she reached her errant lover, she smashed both her hands into his, ignoring the crackle and shrill ringing tunneling through her ears.

He dropped her like a hot potato, but barely gives his hands cursory glance before he drew his sword—somehow still as clean as the day it was made—from his back, and brought it crashing down on her head.

Her arms rose, tanking the shot and sending shockwaves through her body. The flame within her roared, pure fire pulsating through her veins, raising the song of her heart to a fever pitch.

The first fist connected with his solar plexus. The next, one of his ribs. Then his kidney. Then the center of his chest, then his shoulder.

He tried to counter, slashing his sword at the top of her head, but she twirled underneath his arm and started in on his back. Each blow chipped away a chunk of the man's aura, almost visibly as her arms begin to blur.

She twisted herself under his arm, planting a fist into his armpit, and tried not to laugh at the howl that ripped from his lips, the first noise beyond breathing he'd made that night.

Her arm threw a right cross across his chest, a well-timed shot spewing hot fire across his skin and down his legs. A left cross brought the same result, and she kept alternating between her arms, kept the flame burning, kept her opponent from moving.

Then she saw an opening, his jaw leaning down, his arms dangling uselessly at his sides. She crouched down, her legs buzzing, and, like a rocket, shot upwards.

His chin met her fist first, rocking his head back until it was nearly hitting his back. A big, purple bruise in the shape of her fist grew on his skin, and he stumbled back, eyes wide, until they rolled upwards. Gravity sank its claws into his skin, pulling him down to lip-lock with the floor below.

Her own feet met the ground with a gentle _phish,_ and she felt Weiss's glyph wear off, the world around her slowing back to its normal pace. It felt like waking up from a wonderful dream, only to realise you left the window open, and your room feels like a freezer.

She rolled her neck, twinging at the cracks it gave off. Her hands felt sore, her legs like taffy, and she was sure that if she flexed too hard, her clothes would poof away.

 _Second note to self: Air + Super speed + cheap clothes = Bad_

More clangs rang out next to her, bringing up a small groan as she turned. Nearby was Ruby and Weiss, swords and scythe poised at a tired looking Velvet, eyes darting from her opponents to her unconscious teammates to her, prey surrounded by hungry predators.

"It's over," Ruby said, stepping forward with far too much ease for someone who threw herself into a wall. "We don't want to hurt you—"

"Much," Weiss grumbled, holding a hand to her stomach.

Ruby shot her a glare, but continued talking to the faunus. "We need your help. Your code is the only hope we have to find Blake."

Velvets' hands, curled into tight fists, relaxed, before hardening once more. "No," she said. "I'm not—I'm not going against Coco."

"Come on, that isn't a good enough reason!" Yang yelled, before softening her voice to something (almost) soothing. "She will _die_ if we can't find her."

"I know!" Velvet's shone with fury, before tears slid down her cheeks. "I—I hate this, but I… I'm not the leader."

Weiss cast a glance over her teammates, all lying on the floor in various states of unconsciousness. "I don't think _anyone's_ the leader right now."

"Look," Ruby said, a head-turning amount of malice dripping into her voice. "If you don't do anything, if you keep trying to fight, keep trying to stop us, Blake dies. An innocent person, an innocent _faunus_ dies. Guess whose fault that'll be?"

"I…I…" Velvet stuttered, taking a step back.

"Yours," Ruby continued, pressing forward both verbally and physically. "Her blood will be on _your_ hands. Do you really want that?" Her voice quieted, reaching something that Yang never wished to hear from her younger sister. "The answer is no. No you don'ot."

Velvet stared at the girl, until her eyes closed. "Okay," she breathed, just barely audible. "Okay, I'll… I'll help, just… promise me."

Yang stepped forward. "What? Promise what? Do you want us to bring these guys to the hospital? We can do that, no problem—"

"Stay away from my team," Velvet finished.

Yang might as well have been hit with a train. "…What?"

"Look around."

Yang did so, along with the rest of her team.

The room was a mess. Metal shavings, shards, and glass littered the floor, along with dozens of spent shells. (Thousands where Coco was standing) Computer monitor's shot sparks from bullet holes, corrupted text flickering across the screens.

That wasn't what caught Yang's attention.

It was the wires, dangling from the roof, and jutting from the floors, that drew her eyes. White sparks flew from their tips, landing on the floor and roof, burning through the metal.

And CFY's prone bodies, several less than an inch away.

"You nearly killed them, and… you didn't even notice," Velvet continued, but Yang wasn't listening.

Cardin was in the hospital.

That White Fang member was dead.

God knows how many people dies during the fight at the restaurant.

And now… some of their friends, fellow huntress's, barely survived a fight against them. Against _her._

"Velvet, I—" Ruby said, shushed by the faunus's shaking head.

"Just… where's the computer you had running?"

"Over there," Yang said, pointing towards the device, but her eyes never moved.

How many more people was she going to hurt?

...It didn't matter.

Blake needed her.

Blake. Needed. Her.

Needed all of them.

That's all that mattered.

Right?


End file.
